Edu-leaders

Tamil Nadu based Noorul Islam University (NIU) will soon launch its satellite. This satellite costing approximately Rs.100-crore will be used for agricultural applications and also to facilitate higher education.

The central government has given its nod to the university to fabricate the satellite, which is planned to be launched in 2013. The pro-chancellor of Noorul Islam University (NIU) Faizal Khan informed that the official announcement about the university's satellite launch plans would be made by central government officials at the NIU campus, 25 km from the Kerala border into Tamil Nadu.

Khan said, "We will prepare the satellite on our campus and get it ready for launch in 2013. The satellite will be used in the fields of agriculture and higher education." The satellite fabrication would be done under the watchful guidance of 18 former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) employees, who now work at the Noorul Islam College of Engineering.

NIU was established in 1989. It started off with just 40 students and now has an annual intake of 3,500 students. It has a state-of-the-art super specialty hospital and also runs a dental college.