Back in 1999, at the time of Kargil war, when Pakistani troops took a position in the war, India realized the need for GPS data instantly for the region. At that time, US government had space-based navigation system which could be helpful for India in providing viral information but the shockingly US denied to give it to India. However, before the Kargil war too India had felt the need to have indigenous satellite navigation system but the war of 1999 made it inevitable.
ISRO(Indian Space Research Organization) took the country closer to the aim that would be achieved in less than two years. (IRNSS)Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System drew the result that will be good like any other space-based navigation system. With this, India will be able to keep an eye on its boundaries up to 1,500 km beyond it. This space-based navigation system runs on a combination of seven satellites which resembles the region from different angles, and the process helps to calculate from relative data, real-time movement of objects by less than 10m.
ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan in the year 2014 said, “ISRO launched the first of the satellites in the group named IRNSS-1A, in July last. By mid-2015, we will have all the seven in place.” This marked India’s success in having a much-needed system that once denied by the US.
Why did the US deny?
India after Independence chose not to merge with any superpower but Pakistan made formal relations with the US. In the year 1950, Pakistan Prime Minister in his visit to the US requested them to set a CIA base in Pakistan as all other major powerful colonies had their bases in different countries.Once in the year 1954, Ayub Khan, the then Army commander told to US brigadier, “I didn’t come here to look at barracks. Our Army can be your army if you want us. But, let’s make a decision.” Then it was said that Pakistan had sold the country for financial aid and weapons to the US and became US’s slave. CIA had built bases in Pakistan.
Also, after the USSR and US’s tug of war in 1979, the relation of US and Pakistan reached to another height.
India still believed in Non-alignment policy on the other hand. USSR was a better friend for Indian than the US because it supplied arms and intelligence support to India.
In the war of 1971, US threatened India to back off its Army but India denied to and hence CIA had to face the humiliating defeat. So, at the time of Kargil war, CIA had huge military logistics presence in Pakistan and it couldn’t endanger them by assisting India in the war. Thus, US denied helping India for GPS access.
However, now India has its own Navigation system and all thanks to the denial of US.
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