Dubai : Former Indian Space Research Organisation [ISRO] Chairman K Radhakrishanan is all set to join the advisory board of the UAE Space Agency, the Indian Ambassador to the UAE, Navdeep Singh Suri, said on January 9.
Disclosing the details at an event to celebrate the 16th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (NRI Day) jointly organised by the Indian embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Indian consulate in Dubai, Suri said that he had recently had a meeting with Dr. Mohammad Al Ahbabi, Director General of the UAE Space Agency.
Referring to a joint statement on collaboration in the space sector, he said: “I expect that in the next two weeks or so, a former chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation [ISRO] will come on the advisory board of the UAE space agency..”
Ranked among the world’s top 10 scientists in 2014 by Nature journal, Radhakrishnan has held several key positions in ISRO and other scientific agencies before retirement. He was one of the key people behind India’s Chandrayaan-1 moon mission.
The ambassador also hinted at more fascinating collaborations between the two countries in the space sector is in the pipeline. India has signed a contract with the UAE related to supply of defence materials, he added.
His statement also comes in the wake of the upcoming UAE visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi next month.