Three months after India successfully launched the South Asia Satellite, Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani’s government has requested India to launch a satellite especially for their use.
The South Asia Satellite was launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) from Sriharikota space station on 5 May 2017. It aims to boost the communications services for south Asian countries.
According to a report in the The Economic Times, Afghanistan Minister Syed Agnad Shah Sadaat met Indian Ambassador Manpreet Vohra and made the request.
The Indian envoy reportedly discussed opening a terminal for Afghanistan in the South Asia Satellite, another special satellite, and other India-assisted development projects.
While it is still unclear if the satellite would be used for tracing terrorist hideouts, it has been reported that the satellite would be used in sectors such as agriculture, telecommunications, and television services.
India would provide two out of 12 transponders to Afghanistan, the report added.
(With inputs from Economic Times)
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