NEW DELHI: The government on Thursday approved the establishment of the Third Launch Pad (TLP) at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) of the ISRO at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh with a cost of Rs 3984.86 crore that includes the establishment of the launch and other associated facilities.Briefing media after the meeting of the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Information & Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said, the approved third launch infrastructure would enable Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to launch the Next Generation Launch Vehicles and will also support as standby launch pad for the Second Launch Pad at Sriharikota.Noting that the project is of national importance, the Minister said, this would also enhance the launch capacity for future Indian human spaceflight missions.Giving details about the implementation strategy and project targets, the Department of Space in a statement said, “The TLP is designed to have configuration that is as universal and adaptable as possible that can support not only NGLV but also the LVM3 vehicles with Semicryogenic stage as well as scaled up configurations of NGLV.”With this the government intends to realise industry participation to the maximum by fully utilising ISRO’s experience in establishing the earlier launch pads and maximally sharing the existing launch complex facilities, it added.The Minister said the TLP is targeted to be established within a period of 48 months with a total fund requirement of Rs 3984.86 crore that includes the establishment of the Launch Pad and the associated facilities.The Department of Space in the statement said, the Project would boost the ‘Indian Space’ ecosystem by enabling higher launch frequencies and the national capacity to undertake human spaceflight and space exploration missions.As of today, Indian Space Transportation Systems (ISTS) are completely reliant on two launch pads – the FLP and the SLP. The FLP was established 30 years ago for PSLV and continues to provide launch support for PSLV and SSLV. The SLP was established primarily for GSLV & LVM3 and also functions as standby for PSLV. The SLP has been operational for almost 20 years and has enhanced the launch capacity towards enabling some commercial missions of PSLV/LVM3 along with the national missions including the Chandrayaan-3 mission. The SLP is also getting ready to launch the human rated LVM3 for the Gaganyaan missions.In the statement the Department of Space said, “The expanded vision of Indian space programme during the Amrit Kaal including the Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS) by 2035 and an Indian Crewed Lunar Landing by 2040 require a new generation of heavier launch vehicles with new propulsion systems, which cannot be met by the existing launch pads.”The expeditious establishment of the TLP to cater to a heavier class of Next Generation Launch Vehicles and as a stand by for SLP has been imperative in view of the need to meet the evolving space transportation requirements for another 25-30 years, it added.
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