Team Blitz India
NEW DELHI: VR Lalithambika, former Director, Directorate of the Human Spaceflight Programme, ISRO, was conferred the top French civilian honour of Légion d’Honneur for her engagement in space cooperation between France and India.
The award was given to her by Ambassador of France to India, Thierry Mathou, on behalf of the French Government, on November 28.
Created in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte, the Légion d’Honneur (the Legion of Honour) is the highest civilian award given by the French Republic for outstanding service to France, regardless of the nationality of the recipients.
A specialist in advanced launch vehicle technology, Lalithambika, a distinguished scientist of ISRO, has worked extensively on various ISRO rockets, particularly the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), according to a press release issued by the Embassy of France in India.
In 2018, as Director of the Human Spaceflight Programme, she coordinated closely with the French National Space Agency (Centre national d’études spatiales – CNES) for India’s Gaganyaan project.
