As India's first indigenously-developed Radar Imaging Satellite RISAT-1 nestled in its orbit hundreds of kilometres above the earth, here on terra firma, the woman from Tamil Nadu, responsible for the feat, too, turned into a star in her own right.
N. Valarmathi, ISRO's Bangalore-based Project Director for the space mission, was hounded by journalists and television crews, immediately after the post-launch press conference convened by the ISRO Chairman K. Radhakrishnan, and his colleagues heading various centres, concluded.
For the next hour or so, Ms. Valarmathi was cordoned off by a media sold on celebrating her rise from her humble Ariyalur origins, to head one of ISRO's flagship satellite launches. The quizzing covered various aspects, from the technological prowess of RISAT-1, to her school days in Ariyalur.
Ms. Valarmathi (52) deemed the successful launch of RISAT-1, a project almost a decade in the making, a “proud moment”.
RISAT-1 featured an array of new technologies, such as the Synthetic Aperture Radar that penetrates cloud cover and takes images even during the night.
“It's a unique satellite, and carries many new technologies like very high data handling systems, high storage devices, and modulators,” she said.
The woman scientist, who has a passion for communication systems, joined ISRO in 1984, after a master's degree in engineering from Anna University. Immediately, she immersed herself in several exciting satellite projects.
Ms. Valarmathi is the second woman to be the satellite project director at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) after T. K. Anuradha, who headed the communication satellite GSAT-12 programme, but she is the first woman to head a remote sensing satellite project.
Keywords: PSLV-C19, RISAT-1, ISRO, PSLV, RISAT, N. Valarmathi, Tamil woman, Radhakrishnan, radar imaging satellite, Synthetic Aperture Radar, Active Microwave Remote Sensing Satellite
Congrats !! It is a great beginning for us .we proud to be a Tamil people .The lady N. Valarmathi Hon our for our nation .she is doing a good job,she is making a history .she Will keep on do enormous such a things to become india as a prime country of the world. I once again Congrats The Great scientist N. Valarmathi.
As a Tamil, I am proud of Madame Valarmathi of Ariyalur village. Kudos to Madame Sri Anuradha too. Mr. Abraham stated that Tamilnadu is the Oxford of the South. I would venture to say that Tamilnadu is the Oxford of INDIA. Mr. Mani I agree that the Indian Navy should patrol the sea where Indian fishermen ply their trade.
Congrats Madam. We are very proud of you. Keep it up. Our best wishes always to you.
Congratulations Madam! Well done you made us all proud. The very face of the Indian woman is changing and our ladies are at the forefront of Science, Professions, Industry, Management and Services in all sectors. Great!
Let such achievers lead our country too!
First of all she is an earthling, then a human and then a woman. God
didn't create nations or boundary. Now, let us celebrate her achievement
from a village girl to an accomplished leader in space research. Nanri.
Hi,
This s Usha Bhiman.congrats.I am from Ariyallur Arts college.I am
yr best friend.
Regards,
Usha Bhiman.
Hearty congratulations to you mam......You have made us proud and also proved that age is not a hindrance to success and what matters a lot is determination, devotion, perseverance.......Taking you as an example, I hope that many women will unleash their talents and shine in the field
they take up...HATS OFF MAM......
I fully agree with the comments of Ishwar and some others who have rightly pointed out the regional connotation being unnecessarily dragged into the news report. Never mind--I am also very much from Tamilnadu --but this smacks of parochialism.When Tessy Thomas was recently hailed as the project director of AGNI -V launch at DRDO - nobody ever mentioned she is from Kerala --though Keralites are equally fond of such identifications wherever they are. There are lots of regional newspapers which anyway would do reporting from such angles and if The Hindu claims to be the national newspaper it does, it should refrain from such aberrations.
Dear Indian brothers and sisters, I appreciate recogizing Tamils as Indians, I hope that we all show the same sentiments and support when Indian-tamil fishermen, leave alone the poor srilankan tamil brothers, are killed in "Indian Ocean". So, before pointing fingers we should do some retrospection. Atleast lets show this unity in the future to make us feel as Indians.
Why are indians so inferior in complex when tamils excell.Nothing wrong in being tamil first and indian second.Every state should take pride and celebrate in its ethnicity and regional diversity.Kudos to tamils and Tamil Nadu.Its no coincidence that Tamil Nadu is called the Oxford Of The South- the intellectual capital of India.The statistics speaks for themselves .
Today I am more proud to be Indian and salutes the Women power of My
India.
As a person from hailing from Tamil Nadu, I feel slightly dismayed that the Hindu on both counts of Ms Valarmathi being a woman and for hailing from Tamil Nadu. We are human beings first and Indians next. While my own thoughts about regionalism have been amply expressed by many other readers, mentioning that she is a woman also is ultimately degrading all women. Yes, women are capable of doing everything that a man does and by merely mentioning that a woman has contributed, we imply as if they are inferior creatures to men. Let's avoid being chauvinistic in terms of both region and gender.
Congratulations to the team for the success full design and launch of
the satellite. Special thanks to Mrs Valarmathi. And to my fello
indians on the comment section, What is the harm in a second hierarchy
of location description? when there is a Tamilian proud of their
achievement , we could be proud of us too , since Tamilnadu is our own
India. The tone of appreciation in above comments like , we are happy
cause you are a Indian than your recognition of Tamilnadu is void.
There is no harm being more descriptive of the place of origin inside
India. No other country is as diversified as INDIA which is a pride
within itself and to hear people recognizing from different parts of
INDIA is not negativity.
Kudos to Valarmathi and Anuradha for their amazing achievments. I want to state here that in Bangalore newspapers Veerappan's name is mentioned they say he is a Tamil brigand...But when Abdul Kalam's name or any other great personality is mentioned they say they are Indians. I feel if great people like Kalam and Vararmathi/Anuradha are Indians they Veerappan should be "indian" and not state centric!!
There is nothing wrong in hailing a person from your region. We do this all the time when any NRI accomplishes something. Also those familiar with the area she hails from will know the near rural background of the place. My salutations to Valarmathi.
Very happy and proud of Madam.
wish you success in all your attempts.
This is a National Achievement and its the Indian Union of States to be proud of this moment - This will inspire others - well done Mam (ungaluku vazthugdal).
Proud of you Mam. Thank you to flash Ariyalur to be in media for the first time in good sense. Hats off
Its a great moment for me and all Indian females too that a lady had been the project director for a space mission. I hold a sense of pride in reading about the mission and its director who strengthens women empowerment.I wish every Indian lady rise high in her passion and achieve the success in their respective fields.
Every one will inspire by them!!!!.....
proud of you mam... people like you make us feel good
Even "THE HINDU" is not different from other Tamil Nadu centric politicians! We are proud of her because, she is Indian.
Oh..I thought INDIAN woman shined !
Hearty congratulations from an Octogenarian Indo-Canadian ! Being from Chennai,
I feel very happy over this lady's achievements. I wish her all the best.
Tamil Nadu woman stars in satellite launch.Mr Hindu don't say that again
"Tamil Nadu woman stars in satellite launch"As She is an Indian women
first ,so we all Indians are celebrating what this women's achieved.so,
instead say " Indian women stars in satellite launch cheer's to Ms.
Valarmathi.Madam you made us Proud . Thank you for your Parent's.As for you our love & Best wishes will be always be with you.Once Again, cheers from your fellow Indian.
Hi, It is a matter of pride that India is doing well in space research, be it satellite launches for other countries or even our own satellites. It is also a matter of pride that women are heading these successful missions. This is very encouraging and definitely needs to be publicized that it can be an inspiration for other young aspiring scientists especially young girls. But, I dont quite understand the necessity to include the name of the state to which the person belongs to in the headline of the article. Isn't ISRO a national organization? and every single achievement of it celebrated unequivocally by all Indians? Ms. Valramathi herself is an Indian first and she is an inspiration for everybody aspiring to be successfull, therefore un-necessitating the mentioning of the name of the state. If The Hindu aspires to be a true national daily, then you should try to be more inclusive at a national scale instead of projecting or promoting regionalism!
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