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After India became independent, Jawaharlal Nehru, the country’s first Prime Minister, a man of scientific temperament, initiated several reforms in higher education, science and technology. One important step was the establishment of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT). The first of these was founded in Kharagpur, West Bengal, in 1951. An Indian Institute of Science was ALSO founded in Bangalore. India’s close ties with the Soviet Union during the 1960s also kick started the Indian space program spearheaded by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) as well as India’s nuclear program.

On May 18, 1974, India CONDUCTED her first nuclear TEST explosion at Pokhran, codenamed Operation Smiling Buddha. The ISRO was responsible for establishing the Thumba Equatorial launching station in Trivandrum, Kerala, where eminent scientists like Vikram Sarabhai and APJ Abdul Kalam, former Indian President, have worked. It also launched remote sensing satellites, developed India’s first satellite, ARYABHATTA, and sent astronauts into space.

India was able to acquire nuclear reactor technology early on from WESTERN countries like the US and Canada. As of 2008, India has 17 atomic power plants in operation, generating 4,120 MW power. More are coming up. In 1981, began the Indian Antarctic program when the first Indian expedition left for Antarctica from Goa. India established a base, Dakshin Gangotri, to which missions were sent each year.