Mumbai: Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed confidence at the Pan IIT World of Technology global conference that technological help can bring revolutionary changes in the field of health, agriculture and rural development. Chief Minister Fadnavis said, “With the help of technology, it will be possible to bring about radical changes in the health sector and provide more convenience to human life. The state government is using new technologies to improve the ‘ease of living’ of citizens.”

Chief Minister Fadnavis was speaking at this global conference organized at Jio Connection Center in Mumbai. Dubai Economic Development Corporation Chief Executive Officer Hadi Badri, Union Science and Technology Department Secretary Prof. Abhay Karandikar, scientist Raghunath Mashelkar, Pan IIT Chairman Devasi Bhattacharya and other experts were present at the event.

Chief Minister Fadnavis spoke about the state government’s efforts to make Mumbai the global capital in the field of fintech and data centers and said, “Mumbai will have the opportunity to move ahead in the technological era. India is making tremendous progress in technology and economic development, and Maharashtra is working to become a trillion dollar economy.”

The Chief Minister also said that the state government is also taking technological help in the agriculture sector. Solar energy technology is being used to provide electricity to farmers during the day, and a target has been set to achieve 16 gigawatt solar power by 2026. “Maharashtra is the first state in the country to set up solar energy companies for agriculture,” Chief Minister Fadnavis clarified.

The Chief Minister further said that the state government is providing health services in remote areas with technological help and an insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh is being provided to every citizen under the Mahatma Phule Jan Arogya Yojana. “Through the Jalyukt Shivar Abhiyan, 24,000 villages in the state have been provided with water,” he said.

Praising the research and technological development work of IIT Mumbai, Chief Minister Fadnavis said, “IIT Mumbai is no longer just an educational institution but has become the ‘Indian Innovation of Technology’. Work is going on on the Drona project and big changes are being brought in life with the help of technology.”

IIT researchers, professors, students and technology experts were present at the event.

New Delhi, Jan 17: Elon Musk-led SpaceX’s Starship successfully aced the seventh test flight but lost the upper stage.

Starship and Super heavy booster lifted off from SpaceX’s Starbase site in South Texas at 5:37 p.m. EST (4.07 am IST). All 33 Raptor engines powered the Super Heavy booster and Starship on a nominal ascent. Starship’s giant first-stage booster, known as Super Heavy was caught by the Starbase’s launch tower, using the structure’s “chopstick” arms, as it did for the first time on Starship Flight 5 in October.

While this was achieved about seven minutes after liftoff, SpaceX lost contact with Ship. “All six of Ship’s Raptor engines fired up during the stage’s ascent burn, but telemetry was lost with the vehicle after approximately eight and a half minutes of flight,” SpaceX said in a statement after the flight.

“Initial data indicates a fire developed in the aft section of the ship, leading to a rapid unscheduled disassembly,” it added.

The ship was earlier stated to fly much of the way around the world, then splash down softly in the Indian Ocean off the west coast of Australia about 66 minutes after liftoff. Meanwhile, the company launched an investigation, in coordination with the FAA, to understand the root cause.

“Starship is the first rocket design where success in making life multiplanetary is in the set of possible outcomes,” Musk said in a post on social media platform X.

He also stated that more than individual launches, building up civilisation on Mars is more important. “Any individual launch is not very important.

What matters is the expected date when Mars becomes a self-sustaining civilisation,” Musk said in a post.

Starship’s Flight 6 occurred in November last year. It could not repeat the success of Flight 5 to catch Super Heavy due to a communication issue with the launch tower.

SpaceX is developing the resusable Starship, the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built standing 123 meters tall, to help humanity settle the moon and Mars, among other feats.

The company informed that preparations are underway for the eighth flight test, and is going through prelaunch testing.

New Delhi, Jan 16: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the successful docking of the satellites of the SpaDEX mission is a significant stepping stone for India’s ambitious space missions in the years to come.

India became the fourth nation to ace the space docking technology, after the US, Russia, and China, as the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) informed the merging of two small spacecraft — SDX01, the Chaser, and SDX02, the Target — weighing about 220 kg each.

“Congratulations to our scientists at @isro and the entire space fraternity for the successful demonstration of space docking of satellites,” PM Modi said in a post on X social media platform.

“It is a significant stepping stone for India’s ambitious space missions in the years to come,” he added.

The satellites were part of the Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX) mission, which lifted off aboard the PSLV-C60 rocket, from Sriharikota on December 30.

“Docking successfully completed. India became the 4th country to achieve successful Space Docking. Congratulations to the entire team! Congratulations to India!” ISRO posted.

Dr V. Narayanan, Secretary DOS, Chairman of Space Commission, and Chairman ISRO, congratulated the team ISRO.

On Sunday, the two satellites came as close as three metres in a trial attempt for space docking up to 15 m. It later moved back to a safe distance.

But now, “manoeuvre from 15m to 3m hold point completed”, ISRO said while noting that the docking was achieved “with precision, leading to successful spacecraft capture”.

The docking technology was indigenously developed and has been named the ‘Bharatiya Docking System’.

The SpaDeX mission will help establish India’s capability in orbital docking — a key technology for future human spaceflight and satellite servicing missions. The docking technology is also key for India’s impending space missions including the Moon mission, setting up the Indian space station, and lunar missions like Chandrayaan-4 without the support of GNSS from Earth.