ISRO views setbacks as lessons, teams with NID for Gaganyaan: Chairman Narayanan

Indian Space Research Organisation ( ISRO ) Chairman Dr V Narayanan on Thursday said the premier space agency treats occasional setbacks as opportunities to learn and improve , while continuing to pursue ambitious national and international missions.

Addressing the 45th convocation of the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad , via a pre-recorded video message, Dr Narayanan encouraged graduates to develop self-confidence, a “can-do” attitude, teamwork, and risk-taking . He said, “ISRO, as an R&D organization, succeeds most of the time. But when we face setbacks, we treat them as opportunities to learn and bounce back,” referring to recent missions such as PSLV-C62 in January 2026 , which failed to place 16 satellites in the intended orbit due to an anomaly in its critical third stage, and PSLV-C61-EOS-09 in May 2025 , which was affected by a motor pressure issue.

Despite these challenges, he noted that ISRO has consistently bounced back, citing milestones such as Chandrayaan 1, 2, and 3 , and the commercial launch of the heaviest US communication satellite in December 2025 . Emphasizing the importance of creativity and innovation over resources, he added, “A designer with imagination can always outperform an organization with more money but less creativity.”

Dr Narayanan also highlighted India’s remarkable progress since Independence. From a literacy rate of around 12% in 1947, the country now boasts nearly 80% literacy and multiple national institutes, including NID. Economically, India has surpassed the United Kingdom in size and currently ranks fourth globally.

Looking ahead, ISRO is preparing for multiple ambitious projects, including the Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission slated for 2027 , Chandrayaan-4 and 5 lunar missions , India’s own space station by 2035 , and a moon mission by 2040 . For Gaganyaan, ISRO is collaborating with NID to design ergonomically optimized crew modules , focusing on space efficiency, astronaut comfort, and intuitive controls .

The convocation, themed “Imagination to Impact,” was attended by Distinguished Scientist Dinesh Kumar Singh , Principal Economic Adviser Praveen Mahto , and NID Director Ashok Mondal . A total of 543 students received degrees, including 355 Master of Design graduates, 187 Bachelor of Design graduates, and one PhD scholar.