A S Kiran Kumar, the Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro), has lauded private companies for taking space technology to greater heights.

Private companies have boosted space tourism and space exploration, he said at the 11th Global Communication Conclave organised by the Public Relations Council of India (PRCI) in the city on Friday.

“Many companies are offering zero-gravity experience. There are people who offer visits to space. People are taking about one-way tickets to Mars,” he added.

Kumar also spoke about how observing earth from the vantage point of space helps provide accurate disaster warnings about cyclone and other natural and man-made events.

Referring to the launch of a record 104 satellites in a single flight by Isro’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) on February 15, he said 88 of the satellites belonged to a single company, and added that it was an attempt to project the entire globe (earth surface information) in many colours at spatial resolution of about five metres on a daily basis.

Chanchalapathi Dasa, vice chairman, The Akshaya Patra Foundation, recalled the humble beginnings of the charitable trust. “When we received a request to extend the midday meal scheme to 30,000 children, we wondered how to do it. But now we are feeding 1.8 lakh children.”