According to the Chinese media, India's space technology still lags behind the US and China and it has not yet formed a complete system.
A Chinese state-run newspaper in an editorial Thursday said India's record of sending 104 satellites into space was "a limited achievement", with India's space programme still lagging behind China's successes in its manned space programme.
India on Wednesday launched a record 104 satellites on a single rocket, which followed the Mars orbiter mission, which also garnered attention in China. The Chinese government described the Mars orbiter mission as "the pride of Asia" and said it would be keen to work more closely with India on space projects.
The state media, however, struck a different note on Thursday. "The Indians have reason to be proud," said a Thursday editorial in the Party-run Global Times, a widely read tabloid. "However, the space technology race is not mainly about the number of satellites at one go," it added. "It's fair to say the significance of this achievement is limited. In this regard, Indian scientists know more than the Indian public, who are encouraged by media reports."
INDIA'S SPACE PROGRAMME VERSUS US, CHINA
The editorial pooh-poohed where India's space programme stood in comparison to America's and China's. "India's space technology development tends to project national image. It's reported that India also plans to reach Venus, another programme that is suitable for media hype but lacks follow-up research," the editorial said.
"On the whole, India's space technology still lags behind the US and China's. It has not yet formed a complete system. For instance, the engine of its rockets is not powerful enough to support large-scale space exploration."
WHERE IS INDIA LAGGING BEHIND
The editorial pointed out, "There is no Indian astronaut in space and the country's plan to establish a space station has not started," referring to China's manned space missions, with two astronauts last year spending 30 days in the Tiangong-2 space module, which will be developed into a full-fledged space station.
The paper did add that it was "a hard-won achievement for India to reach current space technology level with a relatively small investment", saying it offered "food for thought for other countries", pointing out that the US space budget in 2013 was $39.3 billion, China $6.1 billion, Russia $5.3 billion, Japan $3.6 billion and India $1.2 billion.
The editorial concluded that India's example was "worth pondering". "The first is its ambition to make India a great power. Therefore, it's focused not only on immediate interests but long-term ones. Second, the country believes it should remain present in space technology development, given its close links with military. And third, India is under pressure to compete with China and refuses to lag behind."
"India's Achilles' Heel is its relatively small economic scale and a weak foundation for national development. As a hierarchical society, it has both world-class elite and a largest number of poor people. Many lessons can be drawn from India. As a rising power, it has done a good job. It is ambitious but pragmatic, preferring to compare with others as an incentive to progress. India's political and social philosophy is worth pondering."
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