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US envoy to India Eric Garcetti said on Wednesday that America will send an Indian astronaut to the International Space Station by the end of the year.

 

He said the NISAR project, a joint Earth-observing mission between the US space agency NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), is also likely to be launched by the end of the year.

 

“We will put an Indian astronaut into the International Space Station this year.

 

“We promised when PM (Narendra) Modi came (to the US in 2023) that by the end of this year, we will do this, and our mission is still on track to be able to go in space this year,” he said.

 

The US ambassador spoke at an event celebrating the 248th Anniversary of the United States' Independence Day. 

 

He highlighted the importance of India and the US coordinating research and critical emerging technology to leverage each other’s strengths. 

 

The diplomat also highlighted India's achievement in landing ‘Chandrayaan 3’ on the Moon last year at a fraction of the cost of a similar lunar mission by the US.

 

“The US has some capacities that India still doesn't have today. When the two are combined, both countries have those capacities,” he said.

 

On the civilian nuclear energy arena, Garcetti said that after the elections, the Indian government can address outstanding liability issues and move forward “arm in arm and hand in hand.”

 

Two sites in India – Mithi Virdhi in Gujarat and Kovadda in Andhra Pradesh – have been earmarked for US companies to build nuclear reactors.

 

However, the companies have raised concerns over the Civil Liability Nuclear Damage Act 2010, which provides prompt compensation to the victims for damage caused by a nuclear incident through a no-fault liability regime.