The President, Droupadi Murmu, on Tuesday, inaugurated the integrated cryogenic engine manufacturing facility of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Bengaluru. The ₹208 crore facility was constructed on a 4,500 square metre campus for producing cryogenic and semi-cryogenic engines for ISRO’s launch vehicles.
“HAL and ISRO together contribute to strategic defence and development. Both organizations have played a major role in the development of various equipment and programmes which have reinforced the security and development of our country,” said the President.
“The facility will cater to the entire rocket manufacturing and assembly under one roof and will boost self-reliance in rocket engine manufacturing for the Indian space program,” said C.B. Ananthakrishnan, chairman and managing director, HAL.
HAL has already started with the pre-production activities, including the preparation of process plans, drawings, quality plans, and more, and will start realising the modules by March 2023.
The chairman says that HAL’s involvement in the development of cryogenic engines is a significant step toward the advancement and modernisation of technology. “Due to the complex nature of cryogenic engines, very few countries could develop the technology. India joined this select group on January 5, 2014,” he added.
Zonal Institute of Virology
President Murmu also virtually laid the foundation stone for the Zonal Institute of Virology (South Zone) during the same event.
The National Institute of Virology, Pune, under the Indian Council of Medical Research, is taking all possible steps to increase R&D in the field of virology, said the President. She added that the expansion of the National Institute of Virology through Zonal Campuses across the country to meet the demands of the different geographical regions is important.
“With the aim of preparing the country against any health emergencies and predicting the dangerous pathogens , we have developed BSL 3 and BSL 4 laboratories. The labs would be used to investigate outbreaks in remote locations in India,” said Bharati Pravin Pawar, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare.