The Central Government has nominated Dr V Narayanan as the chairperson of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). At present, he is serving as the director of the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC), in Thiruvananthapuram. Additionally, the government has appointed him as the secretary of the Department of Space. As per an order from the appointments committee of the Cabinet on Tuesday, January 7, 2025, Dr Narayanan will succeed Dr S Somnath, the present ISRO Chief on January 14, 2025. Dr Naryanan completed his MTech in Cryogenic Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur in 1989, he ranked first in his course. Afterward, he earned his PhD in Aerospace Engineering from the institution in 2001. IIT Kharagpur is ranked fifth in engineering category of the NIRF rankings. The rankings are published by the Ministry of Education, of the Government of India. Moreover, it has been ranked as the fourth-best higher educational institution in the country as per the World University Rankings 2025. Dr.Naryanan began his career at the space agency in 1984, he has worked on building key technologies used in launch vehicles, which also includes the workhorse PSLV and the country’s heaviest LVM3. The revised LVM3 rock will be utilized in the upcoming Ganganyaan mission to carry the astronauts to space. Dr Naryanan began by working on solid propellant-based engines for the Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV), it is a vehicle that was never operationalized after unsuccessful development flights. He then continued his journey, he pursued his master's from IIT Kharagpur. Dr. Naryanan became one of the first scientists to work on cryogenic energies at ISRO. He has carried out fundamental research and experimental studies which has contributed to developing the overall capacity to build cryogenic engines.
