As the pilot of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft launched for the highly anticipated Axiom 4 mission to reach the International Space Station (ISS), Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla has written history. After several delays, the liftoff occurred on June 25 at 12:01 p.m.
Following the renowned Indian astronaut Rakesh Sharma, Shukla is the first person to visit the ISS in the past four decades. In 1984, Sharma was a member of the Salyut-7 space station, which was then owned by the Soviet Union, and spent eight days in orbit.
Shukla, an Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) astronaut, is joined by mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary, as well as former NASA astronaut and mission commander Peggy Whitson. Poland and Hungary will also be returning to space with the Axiom 4 mission, in addition to India.
Mission Might Inspire Many Young Space Enthusiast- Shukla
Shubhanshu Shukla, a native of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, expressed his hope that the mission will motivate a whole generation of youth before departing for a historic voyage to the International Space Station (ISS), much like the first Indian to travel into space, Rakesh Sharma, did in the past.
The journey has been incredible, Shukla said. A person might truly sense that he is becoming a part of something far bigger than himself during these moments. He can only express how incredibly lucky he is to be involved in this.
Through his quest, he sincerely hopes to motivate a whole generation back in the nation. He wants to take advantage of this chance to encourage children’s curiosity.
His narrative would be a big success even if it only changed one person’s life. He went on to say that the way this worked out for him was that he probably found out he was travelling to Axiom about a week before he really arrived.
He was very happy to be here. This gave him the chance to actually fly to space, which made him extremely delighted.
Shukla’s ‘Skyful’ Experience
Shukla, one of the four astronauts selected for ISRO’s Gaganyaan mission, was born in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, on October 10, 1985.
In June 2006, Shukla received his commission in the IAF jet wing. He has 2,000 hours of flight experience in a variety of aircraft, including the Su-30 MKI, MiG-21, MiG-29, Jaguar, Hawk, Dornier, and An-32. He is a combat leader and seasoned test pilot.
Shukla started a year-long rigorous training programme at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Star City, Moscow, in 2019 to refine the talents that would define his destiny, according to a news agency.
He was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 27, 2024, as one of India’s top astronauts training for Gaganyaan, the country’s first crewed spaceflight scheduled to launch in 2025.
The open-source RISC-V Instruction Set Architecture (ISA) serves as the foundation for this chip, which is a component of the Shakti family of microprocessors and represents a significant advancement in lowering India’s reliance on imported semiconductor technology. IIT Madras built and implemented the IRIS chip, which was first envisaged by ISRO’s Inertial Systems Unit (IISU) in Thiruvananthapuram.
In India, every step of the development process—chip design, production, packaging, motherboard assembly, and software booting—was completed. This accomplishment demonstrates India’s capacity to establish a comprehensive semiconductor ecosystem. The goal of IIT Madras’ Shakti project, headed by Prof. V. Kamakoti, is to develop adaptable processors for a range of uses.
What is IRIS Chip and its Usage?
Fault-tolerant internal memories and specially designed modules like CORDIC and WATCHDOG Timers are features of the IRIS chip, which is designed for space applications. In addition to other essential tasks for space missions, it is made to satisfy the computational demands of ISRO’s command and control systems.
Prof. V. Kamakoti, the director of IIT Madras, stressed the value of employing domestic microprocessors for strategic initiatives and national security. “Any computing system’s brain is the CPU. Instead of doing what you don’t want it to, it should do what you want it to,” he said. Greater flexibility and cost-effectiveness are made possible by the Shakti processor’s open-source nature, which also lowers the cost of replacing parts and permits the use of outdated interfaces.
ISRO Appreciating the Discovery
The microprocessor design and stress tests have been deemed satisfactory by ISRO experts, who will now move forward with their own testing. In addition to enhancing India’s space capabilities, this partnership between IIT Madras and Isro shows off the nation’s developing semiconductor technological skills and opens the door for more domestic space exploration advancements in the future. The creation of water-free concrete that might be utilised to build buildings on the Moon and Mars was previously disclosed by IIT Madras.
About ISRO
The Government of India’s space agency, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), has its main office in Bangalore. Its goal is to “harness space technology for national development while pursuing space science research and planetary exploration.” The Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR), which was founded in 1962 by Jawaharlal Nehru, the country’s first independent prime minister, and his close scientist and assistant Vikram Sarabhai, was replaced by ISRO in 1969.
Thus, the creation of ISRO formalised India’s space endeavours. The Department of Space oversees it and answers to the Indian Prime Minister. Aryabhata, the first satellite created by ISRO for India, was launched by the Soviet Union on April 19, 1975. It bears the name of Aryabhata, the mathematician.
The SLV-3, an Indian-made launch vehicle, launched Rohini into orbit in 1980, making it the first satellite to do so. Later, ISRO created two further rockets: the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) to place satellites in geostationary orbits and the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) to launch satellites into polar orbits.
Numerous Earth observation and telecommunication satellites have been launched using these rockets. There has been the deployment of satellite navigation systems such as GAGAN and IRNSS. ISRO launched the GSAT-14 using a domestic cryogenic engine in January 2014.
The Chandrayaan-4 expedition to the moon has been given the go-ahead by the Union Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The project’s objective is to acquire and show the technologies necessary to successfully return to Earth after landing effectively on the moon. Furthermore, the mission will collect lunar samples and examine them on Earth. Chandrayaan-4 will finally attain the core technological capabilities necessary for an Indian landing on the moon, which is scheduled to take place by the year 2040, and will also safely return to Earth.
During the Amrit Kaal, the Government of India presented an expanded vision for the Indian space program. This vision envisions the establishment of an Indian Space Station (Bharatiya Antariksh Station) by the year 2035 and the landing of an Indian spacecraft on the moon by the year 2040 simultaneously. Several follow-on missions such as Gaganyaan and Chandrayaan are planned to be carried out to bring this vision into reality. These missions will include the development of capabilities related to space transportation and infrastructure. The Chandrayaan-3 Lander successfully proved a safe and gentle landing on the surface of the moon, which has resulted in the establishment of critical technologies and the display of capabilities that are only possessed by selected nations.
ISRO Will Be in the Driving Seat Again
ISRO will be in charge of the development of spacecraft as well as the launch of new spacecraft. In accordance with the established procedures that are now in place at ISRO, the Project will be handled and monitored in an efficient manner. With the cooperation of both the business world and academic institutions, it is anticipated that the mission will be finished within a period of 36 months after it has been approved.
It is anticipated that all of the essential technologies will be created entirely within the country. A number of different industries will be utilised in order to accomplish the task, and it is anticipated that there will be a significant employment potential as well as technology that will be transferred to other areas of the economy.
The Financial Dynamics of the Program
The total amount of money that is required for the technology demonstration mission known as “Chandrayaan-4” is INR 2104.06 crore. The cost encompasses the development and realisation of spacecraft, two launch vehicle missions of LVM3, support from an external deep space network, and the execution of special tests for design validation. This will ultimately result in the mission of landing on the moon’s surface and safely returning to Earth along with the lunar sample that will be collected.
The mission would make it possible for India to achieve self-sufficiency in essential fundamental technologies for manned missions, the return of lunar samples, and the scientific analysis of lunar samples. A considerable amount of Indian industry will be involved in the process of bringing this vision into reality. The Chandrayaan-4 science meetups and seminars have already been created as part of the plan to bring together the academic community in India.
The creation of the Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM), which will be a crucial step towards the Government’s aim of exploring and studying Venus has been approved by the Union Cabinet, which is chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Venus, the planet that is nearest to Earth and is thought to have evolved under conditions that were similar to those of Earth, provides a one-of-a-kind opportunity to gain an understanding of how the habitats of various planets can change in quite different ways.
As part of the “Venus Orbiter Mission,” which is going to be carried out by the Department of Space, a scientific spacecraft is going to be placed in orbit around the planet Venus. The purpose of this mission is to gain a deeper understanding of the surface and subsurface of Venus, as well as the atmospheric processes and the influence of the Sun on the atmosphere of Venus. The investigation of the factors that led to the transition of Venus, which is thought to have been livable at one point in time and was relatively comparable to Earth, would be of great assistance in understanding the development of the two worlds that are considered to be sister planets, namely Venus and Earth.
ISRO is going to be in charge of both the development of spacecraft and the launch of those spacecraft. With the established procedures that are now in place at ISRO, the Project will be handled and monitored efficiently. Through the use of the procedures that are already in place, the data that is created during the mission will be distributed to the scientific community.
The mission would make it possible for India to achieve self-sufficiency in essential fundamental technologies for manned missions, the return of lunar samples, and the scientific analysis of lunar samples. A considerable amount of Indian industry will be involved in the process of bringing this vision into reality. The Chandrayaan-4 science meetups and seminars have already been created as part of the plan to bring together the academic community in India.
The Mission Will Reveal the Secrets of Venus
The mission is anticipated to be completed in March 2028. It is anticipated that the Indian Venus mission will provide answers to a number of the currently unanswered scientific questions, which will lead to a variety of scientific results.
It is anticipated that this will result in a significant increase in employment opportunities and the spread of technology to other areas of the economy.
Mission’s Cost
There is a total of INR 1236 crore that has been granted for the Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM), and out of that amount, INR 824 crore will be spent on the development of the spacecraft.
In addition to the cost of the launch vehicle, the cost comprises the creation and realisation of the spacecraft, which includes its particular payloads and technological components. Additionally, the cost accounts for the cost of global ground station assistance for navigation and network.
Mission Will Promote Indigenisation
With the completion of this mission, India would be ready to conduct future planetary missions with greater payloads and more efficient orbit insertion strategies. During the process of developing the spacecraft and launch vehicle, there will be a considerable engagement of the Indian industry. The participation of a number of educational institutions and the provision of training to students during the pre-launch phase, which encompasses design, development, testing, test data reduction, calibration, and other related activities, is also envisioned.
Through the use of its one-of-a-kind equipment, the mission provides the Indian scientific community with fresh and significant scientific data, hence presenting prospects that are both emergent and novel.
By broadening the scope of the Gaganyaan program, the Union Cabinet, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi leads, has approved the construction of the first unit of the Bharatiya Anatriksh Station. The cabinet has given its approval for the development of the first module of the Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS-1) and for the undertaking of missions to demonstrate and validate various technologies for the construction and operation of the BAS. It is necessary to amend the scope and funding of the Gaganyaan Programme to incorporate new advances for BAS and precursor missions, as well as additional requirements to fulfill the Gaganyaan Programme that is now in operation.
Revisions were made to the Gaganyaan Programme to incorporate the scope of development and precursor missions for the BAS, as well as the necessity of incorporating one extra uncrewed mission and additional hardware requirements for developing the Gaganyaan Programme that is now underway. The human spaceflight program of technological development and demonstration is currently in the process of completing eight flights, with the first unit of BAS-1 being launched in December 2028 to bring the program to a successful conclusion.
Details of Gaganyaan Program
A human trip to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) is one of the goals of the Gaganyaan Program, which was approved in December of 2018. Additionally, this program intends to establish the basis of technologies that will be required for an Indian human space exploration program in the long run. In the Amrit Kaal, the vision for space includes the establishment of an operational Bharatiya Antariksh Station by the year 2035 and the Indian Crewed Lunar Mission by the year 2040. Developing and operationalizing technologies that are necessary for long-term human space missions and future exploration to the Moon and beyond is a significant endeavor that is being undertaken by all main spacefaring nations.
Under the direction of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Gaganyaan Programme will be a national initiative that will involve industry, academia, and other national agencies as stakeholders. It is planned that the program will be carried out using the project management mechanism that has been built inside ISRO.
ISRO will carry out four missions as part of the existing Gaganyaan Programme by the year 2026. Furthermore, by the year 2028, ISRO will carry out four missions for the demonstration and validation of various technologies for the BAS.
How These Initiatives Will Strengthen India’s Space Presence
To better prepare for human space flights to Low Earth Orbit, the nation will acquire the necessary technological skills. The Bharatiya Antariksh Station, which is a national space-based facility, will be particularly beneficial to the advancement of scientific research and technological development activities that are based on microgravity. Because of this, technical spin-offs will be created, and discoveries in important fields of research and development will be encouraged accordingly. It is anticipated that increased industrial participation and economic activity in the human space program would lead to a rise in the development of employment opportunities, particularly in specialized high-technology areas within the space industry and related industries.
The overall financing for the Gaganyaan Programme with the altered scope has been increased to INR 20193 Crore, which came about as a result of net additional funding of INR 11170 Crore in the program that has already been approved.
In honour of the incredible achievements of the Chandrayaan-3 Mission—including the gentle and safe landing of the Vikram Lander and the deployment of the Pragyaan rover on the lunar surface close to the South Pole—the Indian government has designated August 23rd as “National Space Day.”
India has become the first country to land near the Moon’s south pole and the fourth country overall to accomplish this historic feat, joining an exclusive club of spacefaring nations.
It was stated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that “National Space Day” will be commemorated annually on August 23–following the landing of Vikram rover. The momentous landing of Isro’s Chandrayaan-3 on the moon’s south pole on August 23, 2023, was an accomplishment for India.
Despite the setback of the Chandrayaan-2 crash landing four years prior, India became the first country to perform a landing in this region with this accomplishment.
Application of Space Technologies in the Fisheries Sector
The leadership of Dr. Abhilaskh Likhi on the “Application of Space Technologies in Fisheries Sector” to honour the Chandrayaan-3 Mission’s outstanding success.
The Communication & Navigation System for the maritime domain, space-based observation and its impact on enhancing the fisheries sector, and Space Technology in Fisheries—An overview are some of the subjects that will be covered during these 18 lectures and demos.
Various stakeholders, such as the Indian Space Research Organisation (INSCOIS), New Space India Ltd., state and union fisheries departments, ICAR fisheries research institutes, fishermen, Sagar Mitras, FFPOs, cooperatives, and college and university students will take part in the hybrid mode.
How Space and Marine Life Are Closely Connected
The management and growth of marine fisheries in India can be greatly improved with the use of space technologies. Revolutionary shifts occurred in the field as a result of developments in technologies like as GIS, Earth Observations, Satellite Communication, Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, and Satellite-Based Navigation Systems.
Using satellites such as Ocean-sat and INSAT, scientists can track ocean colour, chlorophyll content, and sea surface temperature to find good fishing spots.
They can also use this data to detect blooms of phytoplankton, sediment, and contaminants, which help us understand how healthy the ocean is. The mission of Earth Observations is to optimise fishing operations while guaranteeing safety by monitoring ocean currents, waves, and extreme weather threats using satellites such as INSAT, Ocean-sat, SAR, etc.
With the help of GIS mapping, we can identify marine habitats, fishing grounds, and protected areas, and with the help of Navigation with the Indian Constellation (NavIC), we can follow fishing vessels using satellite-based navigation systems.
With the help of satellites, it may be feasible to communicate when at sea. In order to enhance maritime domain awareness, safety, and the livelihood of fishermen, data can be exchanged in real-time between vessels, shore-based stations, and research institutes through satellite-based communication networks.
Utilising data from several sources, data analytics and AI have the ability to forecast fish distributions, identify outliers, and enhance fisheries management. By using satellite monitoring to identify illicit operations, provide support for aqua mapping, and issue disaster warnings, these cutting-edge solutions improve maritime efficiency and safety. Furthermore, aqua zoning and image sensing provide accurate instruments for efficient fisheries management.
The ISRO Immersion Startup Challenge: AI for Space and Geospatial Innovation is being launched by ISRO-NRSC in partnership with the International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad. To inspire, connect, and enable the subsequent generation of space-tech innovators, the ISRO Immersion Startup Challenge is an all-day event planned to be held annually. The challenge will include an immersive event on August 3, 2024, that unites entrepreneurs, students, academics, and business tycoons from the geospatial and space industries. The challenge application is available now.
National Space Day-2024 AI for Space & Geospatial Innovation: ISRO Immersion Startup-Challenge
Space-tech innovators, Researchers, Students and Professionals are invited to participate. 🔗https://t.co/1ZU2mt6aTE 🗓 August 3, 2024 📍 IIIT, Hyderabad
The challenge’s goal is to encourage creativity, foster relationships between ecosystems, and provide a platform for the upcoming space tech pioneers. Startups, students, faculty, academics, and industry experts in space and geospatial technology will all be present at this event. Through brainstorming sessions, pitching rounds, industry presentations, panel discussions, and mentorship programs, it will encourage the creation of artificial intelligence solutions that can be used in space.
Immersion Startup-Challenge
By providing a stage for the presentation of ideas and the possibility of financial backing, the challenge hopes to encourage creative solutions and bring together important players. There will be a startup challenge and a student/researcher challenge within the program.
Startups in their early stages or well-established businesses who have an innovative AI-powered space solution are welcome to apply for the startup challenges. Students and researchers can demonstrate their abilities in artificial intelligence (AI) for space research and investigate potential commercialization opportunities through the student/research challenges. The competition is open to teams of professionals, researchers, senior engineering/science students, and companies in their early stages or already established.
Along with spending a day in the lab with ISRO experts, participants will also get an opportunity to apply for funds to back their projects. Opportunities for finance and exposure to the space ecosystem will be provided to them. Members of ISRO, IN-SPACe, and DST will be available to them personally. They might even team up with well-known space tech companies and present their innovative concepts to an esteemed panel of judges.
Registration Process
The entire registration process has been made user-friendly so that a maximum number of people can participate in this mega event. Applicants need to follow the simple steps that are mentioned below to complete their registration.
India is known to have the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world. According to the Nasscom report, the country will have more than 50 unicorns by the end of 2021 and more the 100 by 2025. This growth has only been made possible because of the venture capitalists, angel investors, businessmen and high net worth individuals that have been funding startups that have potential.
Bollywood celebrities like Alia Bhatt, Suniel Shetty, Shilpa Shetty Kundra, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Anushka Sharma, Katrina Kaif, Deepika Padukone, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Sonu Sood have also been investing for the past few years to give their career another direction.
Deepika Padukone is one of the highest-paid actresses in India and among the 100 most influential people in the world, according to 2018 Time Magazine. She is the daughter of Prakash Padukone who is a well-known badminton player in India.
Deepika Padukone is known for her work in movies like Om Shanti Om, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, Piku, Bajirao Mastani, Padmaavat, Cocktail, Chhapaak, etc. The actress has spoken up for issues such as Feminism and Depression, designed her own line of clothing called All About You and has been a celebrity endorser for brands and their products.
Besides that, she is also the chairperson of the Mumbai Academy of the Moving Image and also the founder of the Live Love Laugh Foundation bringing awareness about mental health.
Deepika Padukone is now not only an investor but is also involved with the brand strategic decisions. The actress investments are made through the KA Enterprises which is her family office, in which she is a co-director along with her father Prakash Padukone. Through KA Enterprises the actress has invested in many startups such as Epigamia which is an FMCG brand of yoghurt products, FrontRow a hobby based EdTech startup, Blu Smart an electric taxi startup and even Bellatrix Aerospace which is an Indian space tech startup.
Bellatrix Aerospace is an Indian private aerospace manufacturer and a small satellite company that was established in 2015. The Spacetech startup was founded by Rohan M Ganapathy and Yashas Karanam and is based out of the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
The company is known to be evolving and growing in order to develop key technologies in electric propulsion, new generation propellants and launch vehicles. The company plans to launch its own rocket named Chetak in 2023, the speciality of this particular rocket is that it is powered by Aeon engines and that it uses liquid methane as fuel.
The Space tech startup has so far raised over $3 million in a Pre-Series A round from venture capitalists like IDFC Parampara, Karsemven Fund, StartupXseed, Survam Partners, and actress Deepika Padukone through KA enterprise, etc.
The funds generated will be used to expand its team and will help them demonstrate its thruster technology in space. The company has also partnered with Skyroot Aerospace in February 2021. The Bengaluru based startup is now reviewing NASA and European Space Agency standards in order to make their tech reach the global standards. The company aims to build its own launch vehicle and make water-based propulsion systems.
The startup is currently working on building an electric-based propulsion system which is the Microwave Plasma Thrusters (MPT). This supposedly will help their clients to take bigger payloads into space at a lower cost. The MPT propulsion system is also more eco-friendly, lightweight and costs less than compared to the chemical propulsion system. ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization) is now on board to help develop this technology. According to the founder Rohan Ganapathy, Bellatrix will soon be setting up its offices in the US and Europe.
Blu Smart is an electric taxi startup founded in October 2018 by Puneet Singh Jaggi, Anmol Singh Jaggi and Punit K Goyal. The startup claims to so far have more than 20,000 customers in the Delhi NCR in just 3 months from its launch, scaling its ridesharing fleet to more than 200 electric cars. By 2019, the company has scaled to over 500 cars in Delhi and Mumbai making it the largest all-electric B2C ridesharing company in India and top 3 in Asia.
An example of the BluSmart car
The company is headquartered in Gurugram, Haryana; while it’s creating many job opportunities for drivers with a monthly revenue stream. Blu Smart is slowly transforming metropolitan cities in India by providing 100% electric, sustainable and most reliable mobility solutions.
Blu Smart is aiming to make an all-electric ecosystem with funding from venture capitalists and partnerships across automotive, infrastructure and energy companies. It also is planning to board more than 15,000 electric cars and 2500 chargers on the platform by the end of 2021.
Thecompany generated $3 million funds from Deepika Padukone who invested through her family office KA enterprises, along with other investors like JITO Angel Network, Sanjiv Bajaj and Rajat Gupta from Bajaj Capital, Survam Partners and Rajesh Agarwal from Micromax.
According to Punit Goyal the co-founder of BluSmart,
“Blusmart is focused on providing superior mobility experience for its customers, cost savings, passenger safety and security. Our innovative mobility allows customers to travel whenever they want without the hassles of car ownership and stress of finding parking spots in densely populated urban areas.”
FrontRow is an ed-tech startup that is based in Bengaluru and Mumbai with a 20 member multi-disciplinary team. The company was founded by Shubhadit Sharma, Mikhil Raj and Ishaan Preet Singh who were executives from the startup ecosystem before coming together and starting FrontRow.
The Bengaluru based startup wants to make non-academic learning accessible and affordable for Indians in rural areas by getting funds from high profile investors. The company enables everyone to pursue their passion and learn from the best professional experts and celebrities.
FrontRow claims to be Building ecosystems around passions like comedy, cricket, dance, music, cricket and fitness among others. There is a huge demand for learning non-academic subjects in India. This is why each course it provides contains 15 to 25 video lessons available at affordable prices like Rs. 500.
These courses are taught by experts in that field like for example Singing is taught by Neha Kakkar, Standup Comedy taught by Biswa Kalyan Rath, Batting by Suresh Raina, Bowling Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rap by Divine, Music composition by Amit Trivedi, etc.
Frontrow Website
Ishaan Preet Singh the founder of the startup says that they will be many more courses coming in 2021, and will also be doubling down on the categories. The company is bridging the gap between urban and rural cities by providing offline and online video lessons.
It is also allowing its users to participate in daily challenges, peer to peer interactions, collaboration opportunities and activities featuring celebrity’s judges also receive feedback and tips from their mentors. FrontRow is also planning to expand to other channels like B2B partnerships besides the D2C one.
The company is targeting hobby learning which is the Ed-tech sector’s next big thing. This is why the company managed to raise a seed funding of $3.2 million from Investors like Lightspeed India, Elevation Capital and Deepika Padukone through KA Enterprise.
In an interview, Deepika mentioned her reason behind funding this startup saying that,
“If there’s one thing I wish I had access to while growing up, it would be a platform like FrontRow, because its gives access to abundant knowledge in non-academic fields and connects them to a community of peers and professional of the fields of interest”
Epigamia is an FMCG startup that was launched by Rohan Mirchandani, Uday Thakker, Chef Ganesh Krishnamoorthy and Rahul Jain in 2015. The company first started out being a Greek Yogurt brand and then went on to expand its products to artisanal curd, snack pack, Misti Doi and even smoothies.
Epigamia markets its products through 21 different stock keeping units and 7000 retail stores which include Big Bazaar, Godrej Nature Basket, Big Basket, Amazon, Reliance Fresh in metropolitan cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad and Kolkata.
The journey of Ghee spreads with Deepika Padukone
The company has so far created more than 21 different products and plans to scale all over India and enter 50,000 stores in the coming years. The FMCG market is currently over $1.2 billion dollars, over 6% of the orders come from metro cities ordering through online channels of the FMCG total sales.
The FMCG market in India is estimated over $104 billion in the year 2020 and is said to be growing at the rate of 28%. This is why Deepika Padukone decided to invest in the company in May 2019.
The company has so far raised $51 million from investors like Verlinvest, Danone Manifesto Ventures, DSG Consumer Partners and Deepika Padukone from KA Enterprise in the 3rd round of funding.
According to Rahul Jain the co-founder of Epigamia, the company aims to increase its consumer base and added that, “We believe that our association with Deepika Padukone will go a long way in making people aware of our brand and product. Deepika is a perfect fit to bring to life the brand ideology.”
In a recent interview, the actress also stated that “not only do I love the products that the company makes but also connect very strongly with the brand philosophy, the team has big plans for future expansions and I am excited to be closely involved as we make new products and enter new cities.”
The most recent product the company made was the Chocolate ghee spreads, which was marketed by Deepika Padukone as it was her idea to mix ghee and chocolate together. Deepika along with Epigamia also made an Instagram challenge called #DigSwirlSpread which took Instagram by storm, advertising the company and its products instantly.
Deepika Padukone, a global Indian icon, and other investors led a $2.6 million USD pre-series A investment for Supertails.com.
Supertails.com, a Bangalore-based digital pet care start-up founded by Mr Varun Sadana, took an entry into India’s fast-developing pet care sector. Supertails.com is a one-of-a-kind platform that serves the growing pet parent community by offering dependable veterinarian services and a one-stop-shop for pet food and supplies.
Supertails.com is distinguished by its one-of-a-kind offering of a fully digital telehealth consultation service provided by a team of highly skilled in-house veterinarians. The brand strives to bring pet parents closer to the widest choice of pet supplies from India and around the world, with doorstep delivery services available across the country.
Supertails.com seeks to enrich this new adventure for them with items and services that they need the most as more people join pets to their families. The founders of Supertails.com and their team of pet care specialists and enthusiasts are united by a tireless love for the pet care ecosystem and a mission to make India a pet-friendly nation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Deepika Padukone?
Deepika Padukone is one of the highest-paid actresses in India and among the 100 most influential people in the world according to 2018 Time Magazine.
What are the startups funded by Deepika Padukone?
Deepika Padukone has invested in many startups such as Epigamia which FMCG brand of yoghurt products, FrontRow a hobby based ed-tech startup, Blu Smart an electric taxi startup and even Bellatrix Aerospace which is an Indian space tech startup.
What is the clothing line of Deepika Padukone called?
The clothing line of Deepika Padukone is called All About You.
What is the net worth of Deepika Padukone?
The net worth of Deepika Padukone is Rs. 103 Crore.
What is the KA Enterprise?
KA Enterprises is the family office, in which she is a co-director along with her father Prakash Padukone. The actress funds startups through this office.
The Indian Space Research Organization has announced that they are offering a 5-day free online course on Machine Learning. The course is expected to cover Machine Learning to Deep Learning in a period of 5 days. Let’s look at the further details of the online certification course provided by ISRO.
ISRO has invited applications for a 5-day free online course from interested candidates. The course would cover Machine Learning to Deep Learning: A journey for remote sensing data classification. This is a short course that can be completed within a period of 5 days and also provides a certificate for the participants.
The course is going to be conducted through the IIRS (Indian Institute of Remote Sensing) which is considered to be part of their outreach programme and the coordinator of the programme is from the IIRS DLP team, Dr. Poonam S Tiwari.
Details of the ISRO Course
The IIRS Machine Learning programme will be conducted from 4 to 5.30 PM from the 5th-9th of July 2021. The participants will be able to attend the course through the e-class portal of IIRS Dehradun using any web browser.
The course is being sponsored by the Department of Space, Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS), the Government of India and Dehradun. The course is offered free of cost and there are no enrollment fees or course charges. On the completion of the course, the participants will receive a certificate from the Indian Space Research organization.
Target Audience for the Course
The target audience for the course or the participants who could benefit from the course is the professionals who are engaged in different applications for remote sensing data processing and are developing a specific interest in the field and would want to further increase their knowledge and learn the Machine learning or the concept of Deep Learning.
The course also can be attended by the participants who have a basic understanding of the Deep Learning and Machine Learning concepts and also the ones who have a basic understanding of concepts such as Geographical Information System and Remote Sensing.
The course intends to providing knowledge and educating the participants on exploring the algorithms of Machine Learning Concepts and the Deep learning in order to develop a specific level of information on remote sensing data sets from multi-sensor.
The syllabus and the course schedule are as follows
5 July 2021 – Remote Sensing and its sensors of various resolutions. Radiometry and geometric corrections and basic understanding of the image.
6 July 2021 – Basic Classifier to Machine Learning: A Journey.
7 July 2021 – Methods in Machine Learning: Supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement.
8 July 2021 – Fuzzy-Machine Learning with application in the temporal data processing.
9 July 2021 – Network based Learning Algorithms: ANN to CNN or RNN.
Requirements for Receiving the Certificate
Even though it is a free course and open for all there are certain basic criteria for receiving the certificate. The participants will be receiving a certificate based on their attendance for their sessions, which is supposed to be more than 70% of the course through the e-class portal.
The participants who attend the course sessions through the YouTube channel of IIRS will have to mark their attendance after 24 hours through an offline session.
The interested participants will be able to register for the free online course by visiting the official website of IIRS and Select Course Name, Individual Registration/Registration through IIRs Nodal Center after that Select Basic Qualification, Basic Knowledge on and write the description for how the course contents of this course will be useful for your professional career. The participants have to option to attend the sessions through the e-class of IIRS or through the YouTube channel of IIRS.
Conclusion
IIRS (Indian Institute of Remote Sensing) is an organization under the Indian Space Research Organization, Department of Space, and Government of India. They are a premier training and educational institute that is set up for developing trained professionals in the field of remote sensing.
FAQ
Who can apply for ISRO free online courses?
Central and state government employees, researchers, professionals, and those attached with NGOs can attend the course. Also, interested candidates must have basic knowledge of remote sensing and GIS.
What is ISRO free course?
ISRO is providing free online course called “Machine learning to Deep Learning: A journey for remote sensing data classification”. This short course can be completed in five days, and participants will also receive a certificate.
How can I apply for free course in ISRO?
Visit the Website of IIRs and Select Course Name, Individual Registration/Registration through IIRs Nodal Center after that Select Basic Qualification, Basic Knowledge on and write the description for how the course contents of this course will be useful for your professional career.
