India to Send Three Astronauts on Landmark Space Mission

India will send a three-member team into orbit for up to a week when it launches its first manned space mission expected in 2022, the government announced on Friday.

Indian ministers approved $1.4 billion to provide technology and infrastructure for the program, according to a government statement.

The sum would make India’s one of the cheapest manned space programs, stepping up its space rivalry with China. But the statement said India also hopes to take part in “global” space projects.

India will become the fourth nation after Russia, the United States and China to send a manned mission into space.

Ministers approved financing to launch an Indian-developed craft into a “low earth orbit” for a duration ranging from one orbital period to a maximum of seven days, the statement said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced in August that India will launch a manned space flight by 2022 with at least one astronaut. The cabinet had not approved the project however.

There will be two unmanned and one manned flights to launch the Gaganyaan (Sky-Vehicle) Program, the statement said.

Without giving a date for the blast off, the government said the manned flight would be “within 40 months” of Friday’s meeting. (source)