Rakesh Sharma
IndiaBiography of Rakesh Sharma
Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian astronaut and the 138th person in the world to travel to space, is a Hero of the Soviet Union. He joined the Khadakvasla National Defense Academy in 1966 and successfully completed his training in 1970. Sharma then served in the Indian Air Force, where he had a successful career. In 1982, when India was invited to participate in the Soviet program "Interkosmos," Major Sharma applied to be part of the cosmonaut squad. Out of 240 applicants, he was selected and began training at the Star City, where he also studied the Russian language. Ravi Malhotra, his backup, trained alongside Rakesh Sharma at the Cosmonaut Training Center.
Mission to Space
Rakesh Sharma was assigned as a research cosmonaut in the crew of the Soyuz T-11 spacecraft. The crew consisted of Yuri Vasilyevich Malyshev as the commander, Gennady Mikhailovich Strekalov as the flight engineer, and Rakesh Sharma as the research cosmonaut. The backup crew included Anatoly Nikolayevich Berezovoy, Georgi Mikhailovich Grechko, and Ravi Malhotra. On April 3, 1984, Soyuz T-11 was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome and docked with the orbital space station "Salyut-7." After spending 7 days, 21 hours, and 41 minutes in space, the expedition returned to Earth using the Soyuz T-10 spacecraft.
During his mission, Rakesh Sharma conducted multi-zone photography of the Northern regions of India to assess the feasibility of building a hydroelectric power station in the Himalayas. He also had a communication session with the Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, who asked him how India looked from space. Sharma responded with a line from a patriotic poem: "India looks better than any other country in the world."
Recognition and Post-Space Career
For his successful international space flight, courage, and heroism, Rakesh Sharma was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet on April 11, 1984. He was also presented with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal. The Indian government awarded the crew with the highest military honor of India, the Ashoka Chakra.
After being demobilized from the Indian Air Force with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, Rakesh Sharma joined Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, a company managed by the Ministry of Defense of India, as a test pilot. He served in the company's National Flight Test Center in Bangalore, where he contributed to the development of the Indian light fighter aircraft. Currently, Rakesh Sharma has retired from active duty and holds the position of Chairman of the Board for Document Automation. In November 2006, Sharma participated in a conference organized by the Indian Space Research Organization, which led to the decision to initiate India's own manned spaceflight program.
