Eknath Chitnis, founding member of ISRO, dies at 100
What's the story
Eminent space scientist Professor Eknath Vasant Chitnis passed away in Pune on Wednesday. He was 100 years old. A key figure in the development of India's space program, Chitnis played a pivotal role in the establishment of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). He was handpicked by Vikram Sarabhai, known as the father of India's space program.
Space exploration
He identified launchpad locations for ISRO
Chitnis was instrumental in identifying launchpad locations for ISRO, first at Thumba in Thiruvananthapuram and later at Sriharikota on Andhra Pradesh's coast. He retired as the director of the Space Application Centre in Ahmedabad in the mid-1980s. His most notable contribution was through the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) in 1975-76, an educational initiative that reached 2,400 villages across six states using NASA's ATS-6 satellite.
Education
He taught at Pune University
A graduate of Sir Parashurambhau College, Wadia College, and the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US, Chitnis taught at the Media and Communications Department at Savitribai Phule Pune University for over two decades until early 2013. He also served on the Board of Directors of Press Trust of India from 1983 to 2010, twice as its chairman.
Recognition
His contributions were recognized with the Padma Bhushan in 1985
Chitnis's diverse contributions to science and education were recognized with the Padma Bhushan in 1985. He was born in Kolhapur during pre-Independence India and completed his schooling and higher studies in Pune (then Poona). He is survived by his son Professor Chetan Chitnis, a senior scientist studying malaria at the Pasteur Institute in Paris.