India’s first privately built rocket – Vikram-suborbital (VKS)- was launched by the ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) on Friday. The rocket – developed by Skyroot Aerospace –has been named after Vikram Sarabhai, hailed as the father of India’s space sector. In a bid to symbolise a new start, the mission has been named ‘Prarambh‘, which literally translates as begining.
This comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi had opened the space sector for participation by private players in June 2020. The government had called it a big reform amid the push for Make-in-India scheme.