NEW DELHI: Renowned Isro scientist Dr Eknath Chitnis passed away in Pune on Thursday at the age of 100. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1985. Dr Chitnis was one of the key figures behind the founding of the Indian Space Research Organisation, working closely with Dr Homi Bhabha in its early years. He played a crucial role in developing India’s first telecommunication satellite, INSAT, which laid the foundation for the country’s progress in space communication. Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar mourned his death, calling it the loss of a visionary in India’s scientific community. Pawar noted that Dr Chitnis’s initiatives in the 1970s made television accessible across the country, marking a new era of information.

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