The Prime Minister Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee today (May 24, 2000) dedicated to the nation the INSAT-3B satellite and inaugurated the Swaran Jayanti Vidya Vikas Antariksh Upagraha Yojana (Vidya Vahini) at a function held at Raj Bhavan in Bhubaneswar, Orissa. Gramsat Pilot Project for Orissa was also inaugurated by the Prime Minister with the direct broadcast of the function to the villages in the Kalahandi-Bolangir-Koraput (KBK) region of Orissa. The programme was telecast live by Doordarshan.

The ISRO-built INSAT-3B, the first in the third generation INSAT-3 series of satellites, was launched on March 22, 2000 by the European Ariane Rocket from Kourou, French Guyana. The satellite is now parked at its allocated location of 83 degree East Longitude above the equator. INSAT-3B has been completely checked out in orbit and the satellite is ready for operational service.

INSAT-3B, which is intended for business communication, developmental communication and mobile communication, carries twelve extended C-band transponders each having a bandwidth of 36 MHz, three Ku-band transponders having a bandwidth of 77/72 MHz and mobile satellite service transponders operating in C X S band frequencies. INSAT-3B will carry important networks for banking and stock exchanges. It will also support Gramsat Pilot projects in different states. The satellite has been formally commissioned today with the inauguration of Vidya Vahini Yojana in Orissa.

Dedicating the satellite to the Nation, the Prime Minister said that India has established a vast technology base to design and develop INSAT and IRS series of satellites for two major applications of space technology, namely, communications and earth observation. He commended ISRO for bringing into reality his vision for the Vidya Vahini Yojana proposed two years back on the occasion of the nation's 50th year of Independence. The Prime Minister expressed his happiness that the Government of Orissa is launching a major development programme in collaboration with the Department of Space.

The Chief Minister of Orissa, Mr Naveen Patnaik said in his address that Orissa will strive to make best use of satellite network with computer connectivity to bring revolutionary changes through E-Governance. He said that his government will make information available to the people through this network so that the government system becomes truly responsive. He said that the worst ever cyclone late last year in Orissa has brought realisation at all levels about the need for an effective communication system and his Government will make best use of the network to make information available to people. Mr Sunderlal Patwa, Minister for Rural Development also spoke on the occasion. The Governer of Orissa Mr Rajendran and Orissa Minister of Science and Technology Mr R P Swain also participated in the dedication function. Dr K Kasturirangan, Secretary, Department of Space and Chairman, ISRO, welcomed the dignitaries and gave the overview of the INSAT and the Vidya Vahini Yojana.

Vidya Vahini

The Prime Minister had announced the Swarna Jayanti Vidya Vikas Antariksh Upagraha Yojana (Vidya Vahini), in his address to the nation on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of nation's independence. This Yojana has now become a reality with the allocation of a few transponders on board INSAT-3B. It is to be noted that India has always emphasised the use of satellite technology for developmental communication since the beginning of its space programme. It had conducted the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) during 1975 using the US Satellite, ATS-6, which covered about 2,400 villages in six states in the country. SITE was heralded as the largest sociological experiment ever conducted in the world. With the establishment of INSAT system in 1983, now one of the largest domestic communication satellite system in the world, India continues to use the medium of satellite television for educational purposes. A major development communication project is going on since November 1996 in the tribal district of Jhabua in Madhya Pradesh. The Training and Developmental Communication Channel of INSAT, inaugurated in 1995, is providing one-way video and two-way audio system of interactive education. This system is used by several agencies like Indira Gandhi National Open University, National Dairy Development Board, State Bank of India and several State Governments for distance education in rural development, women and child development, Panchayati Raj and industrial training

Vidya Vahini Yojana inaugurated by the Prime Minister today is yet another important step in making use of the powerful system of space-based television for educational purposes. The Vidya Vahini Yojana will provide education, information and training to people in rural and remote areas of the country. This Yojana is being implemented in Orissa with the collaboration of Orissa Government as a "Gramsat-Pilot Project for Orissa". It will provide Orissa Government to reach out not only to its grassroots level functionaries, but also, directly to the people who are the most important partners in the developmental process. This network will provide development communication to about 800 villages in the KBK region of Orissa and has facility for interaction between participants. Thus it can help impart technical skill, while exposing them to greater opportunities in life and to motivate them to participate in the development of the State. The network will also have computer connectivity that can help in an efficient administration and to give the right information to the people of Orissa. Interactive training and computer networks will be set up in all the 340 block and district head quarters in Orissa. TV and data up link facilities will be set up at a Hub in Bhubaneshwar. The Gramsat Pilot Project network will also be used for telemedicine applications and disaster management in Orissa.

During the inauguration of Vidya Vahini in Orissa today, villagers from Kashipur could talk face to face with the Prime Minister while those from Kesinga and Puntala could talk to him on audio link and told the Prime Minister a few of their problems.