Guwahati: Today, Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma performed the Bhumi Pujan and laid the foundation stone for ISRO’s ISTRAC Advanced Radar Research Facility (IARRF) at Chandrapur, marking a significant development in the state’s scientific and technological infrastructure.
The facility, being established under the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Network for Space Object Tracking and Analysis (NETRA) programme, will use advanced radar systems and optical telescopes to track objects in space and strengthen the monitoring and protection of India’s space assets.
Assam government has provided nearly 200 bighas of land for the project. The facility is expected to expand the state’s role in India’s space research and scientific infrastructure.
Speaking to the media after the foundation stone-laying ceremony, Sarma expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ISRO leadership for selecting Assam as the location for the advanced radar research centre. Sarma said the facility would place Assam on India’s space research map and described it as a major step towards strengthening the state’s scientific infrastructure.
He said Assam had moved from a period marked by unrest towards building institutions and creating new opportunities, adding that the Chandrapur project marked the state’s entry into a new phase of space science and research.