A Third Launch Pad (TLP) will be established at Sriharikota. The project has been approved by the Union Cabinet and financial sanction has been obtained for a total budget outlay of ₹3984.86 Crore. Establishment of the pad is envisaged to be completed within 4 years timeframe.

ISRO’s Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV), which is under development is about 90 m tall with a maximum lift-off mass of approximately 1000 tonne. Existing launch pads at Sriharikota cannot launch this class of vehicles. The propellant servicing facilities and the Umbilical Tower of the existing launch pads are not designed to meet the requirements of the new propulsion system based on Liquid Methane.

In view of very large height & size, the next generation of launch vehicles are planned with horizontal integration and transport, which are then tilted onto the launch pad along with a Tiltable Umbilical Tower (TUT). Also, TLP incorporates necessary features in terms of foundation support & servicing requirements for future augmentation towards supporting the launches of India’s Crewed Lunar mission.

The first stage of NGLV is configured with a cluster of 9 engines. The hot testing of this stage is planned at the Launch Pad, thereby eliminating the need for establishing a huge separate facility for stage testing.

This information was given by Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Department of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Department of Space and Department of Atomic Energy, in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today.   

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NKR/PSM

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