Business
Ananth Tech gets more defence orders
By P. Vikram Reddy
HYDERABAD, DEC. 8. The Hyderabad-based Ananth Technologies (ATL), promoted by a former senior scientist of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and inaugurated by Dr. Kasturi Rangan in 1991, and its group company, Indian Resources Information Management Technologies, have come a long way since.
The modest Rs. 15 crore group takes pride in having embedded itself in the `high end' slot of IT solutions in SGDAS, PCM Encoders, SPUs and DEELS for Indian space programmes. Enroute, Dr. Subba Rao Pavuluri, the technocrat promoter, himself received the "1999 award for aerospace indigenisation,'' given by the Aerospace Technologies Society, for indigenising Strain Gauge Data Acquisition Systems (SGDAS).
Dr. Rao recalled the zeal with which some technocrats had taken to entrepreneurship, even before economic reforms touched the fringes of their specialised activity. And now the low profile group has bagged some more orders from Central government organisations in the last one month to further establish itself in the high-end segments of the sensitive areas.
Speaking to The Hindu here, Dr. Rao said the company recently bagged a Rs. 3.37 crore order from Government organisations for `strain gauge data acquisition system (SGDAS)' in one of the sensitive areas, where the only alternative was to source it from abroad. This is an order from the Hindustan Aeronautics-Aeronautical Development Agency (HAL-ADA).
Similarly, it received a Rs. 3.40 crore DRDO (Defence Research Development Organisation) order for Pulse Coding and Modulation (PCM) Encoder in another sensitive area, where indigenisation has significant importance. Another recent order is for Rs. 1.50 crores one for control systems from yet another sensitive `aerospace technology development area.' It is also working on Signal Processing Units (SPUs) for space programmes. In all, it is implementing about Rs. 8 crore orders in all these areas right now.
The objectives and goals set for himself and his company when he started on his own, were to develop the group capabilities to offer total solutions (IT) for three segments under ISRO which are, the launch vehicle at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, the ISRO Satellite Centre (Bangalore), and the Satellite Remote Sensing Utilisation Programme. Dr. Rao said his group's endeavour since 1991 had been to expand to all segments of Indian space programmes, and it had supported many activities related to the launch vehicle programme of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre.
This is just one example of scientists and technocrats taking to entrepreneurship with zest to come out with import substitute products and services in critical areas. And the developments of the last decade, when ISRO and defence services too have been talking of privatising or indigenising, are like a booster to them.
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