In a backhanded compliment, the state-run Chinese media today praised India for launching 104 satellites in one go but reminded New Delhi that it had the world’s largest number of poor and that its space technology lagged China by miles.
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Wednesday created history by launching 104 satellites in one go, surpassing the previous record of 37 satellites launched by Russia in 2014.
In an editorial, the state-run Global Times said that the space technology race is not mainly about the number of satellites launched at one go. It also reminded India that it was far behind in the space technology race compared to China and US.
“India's space technology still lags behind the US' and China's. It has not yet formed a complete system. For instance, the engine of its rockets is not powerful enough to support large-scale space exploration. There is no Indian astronaut in space and the country's plan to establish a space station has not started,” the editorial said.
The editorial also mocked India’s small economic scale and pointed out that it had largest number of poor people in world.
“India's Achilles' Heel is its relatively small economic scale and a weak foundation for national development. As a hierarchical society, it has both world-class elite and a largest number of poor people,” the editorial said.
The editorial said that India’s feat achieved with a relatively small investment offered food for thought for other countries.
“It’s a hard-won achievement for India to reach current space technology level with a relatively small investment. It offers food for thought for other countries. India launched a lunar probe in 2008 and ranked first among Asian countries by having an unmanned rocket orbit Mars in 2013,” the editorial added.
