Passing on the baton – Dr Kasturirangan (left) handing over the reins of ISRO to Mr Madhavan Nair

Mr G Madhavan Nair took over as Chairman, ISRO, Chairman, Space Commission and Secretary, Department of Space, on September 01, 2003. He assumed the new position after Dr K Kasturirangan relinquished the office consequent to the President of India nominating him as Member of Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament).

Mr Madhavan Nair is a leading technologist in the field of rocket systems. He has made significant contributions to the development of multistage satellite launch vehicles for the Indian space programme. After graduating in Engineering from the Kerala University in 1966, Mr Madhavan Nair underwent training at Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Mumbai. He joined Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) in 1967. Since then, he has held various positions in ISRO. Impressed with his contributions to the first Indian Satellite Launch Vehicle, SLV-3, he was designated as the Project Director of India’s first operational launch vehicle, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). With seven successful flights so far, PSLV has convincingly demonstrated its reliability and versatility for not only launching multiple satellites but also its capability to place satellites in Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO). Mr Madhavan Nair also contributed to the indigenous development of cryogenic technology and as Director, Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre during 1995-99, he gave concrete shape to its vital infrastructure for the development of technology.