Pakistan Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) and China Great Wall Industry Cooperation (CGWIC) on Wednesday signed a contract for the development and launch of Pakistan Remote Sensing Satellite (PRSS-1) System. Federal Minister for Planning, Development & Reform Ahsan Iqbal and Yin Limping, President of CGWIC signed the historic agreement at P-Block secretariat.
Speaking on the occasion, Federal Minister for Planning, Development & Reform Ahsan Iqbal said that under this agreement space technology would also be transferred to Pakistan and satellite will be launched in June 2018. The minister termed the PRSS-1 another flagship project between China-Pakistan relations after CPEC and said that it would go a long way to redefine the bilateral relations. He said that it would also help Pakistan in national security arena by strengthening border security and surveillance apparatus.
He also proposed for sending a Pakistan astronaut in Chinese Space Ship in 2017 as a mark of strong relations between the two countries. He said that PRSS-1 will be the first remote sensing satellite, which will have multiple applications that will significantly assist in socio-economic and infrastructure development activities in the country.
He said that the project assumed greater importance in the backdrop of ongoing gigantic CPEC projects between China and Pakistan. He pointed out that it would also be utilised to help in various aspects of disaster management such as flood forecasting and damage assessment.
He said that space technology is fundamental in socio-economic development, infrastructure upgradation, agriculture production, urban planning in new age. Through this contract, the cooperation between the two countries in space technology will help Pakistan to carry out the planning and execution of development projects in China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in more scientific way. He said that the signing of this historic agreement took the all-weather and time-tested friendship between China and Pakistan from higher than Himalyas to higher than the stars. He said that bilateral cooperation between the two countries in space domain will open new vistas of socio-economic and scientific cooperation, giving boost to the historic bilateral cordial relations in other fields.