Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Monday, expressed grief over the demise of former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman and space scientist UR Rao. Rao passed away on Monday after suffering from heart diseases.
Prime Minster Modi took to Twitter and asserted that Professor Rao's contribution to India's space programme shall never be forgotten. "His remarkable contribution to India's space programme will never be forgotten," he said. The Congress party also condoled Professor Rao's demise.
Padma Vibhushan award winner Professor Rao died in the wee hours at his residence in Bengaluru. He was 85.
According to the reports, Professor Rao breathed his last at about 2.30am.
PROFESSOR RAO's CONTRIBUTION
Udupi Ramachandran Rao, born in Adampur Village in Udupi, served as ISRO Chairman for 10 years during 1984-1994, succeeding Satish Sharma.
Professor Rao was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 1976 and was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 2017.
Among other positions that professor Rao has held, he is remembered for his tenure at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He also made to the prestigious International Aeronautical Federation's (IAF) Hall of Fame last year during the closing ceremony of IAF Congress 2016 in Guadalajara, Mexico.
From Aryabhatta to the Mars Orbiter Mission, Professor Rao has continued to work with the space agency on several of its projects.
Professor Rao has continuously been associated with India's space programme working with people like late MGK Menon, Satish Dhawan and Vikram Sarabhai.
Inspite of his remarkable work, he also wrote several books on subjects related to space research. Professor Rao published over 350 scientific and technical papers covering wide range of topics.
