Ahmed satellite station is the second-oldest satellite station in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Built with the intention of providing

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

with satellite coverage and promoting cross-country exchange of information, the satellite station was inaugurated on 25 February 1977 and named after the former president

Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (13 May 1905 – 11 February 1977) was an Indian lawyer and politician who served as the fifth president of India from 1974 to 1977. Born in Delhi, Ahmed studied in Delhi and Cambridge and was called to the bar from the I ...

. The station was reputably built at a cost of ₹100 million, with 60% of the station built indigenously and the other fraction purchased with help from a loan from

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. It was built to conform to the strictest standards of the time and was predicted to be 99.99% accurate, with its tracking system accurate to 1/100 of a

degree Degree may refer to: As a unit of measurement * Degree (angle), a unit of angle measurement ** Degree of geographical latitude ** Degree of geographical longitude * Degree symbol (°), a notation used in science, engineering, and mathematics ...

. It is situated in the

Doiwala Doiwala is a town and a Nagar Palika in Dehradun district in the state of Uttarakhand, India. Geography Doiwala is located at . It has an average elevation of 485 metres (1,591 feet). The place comes under Doon Valley's Terai and B ...

region of

Dehradun Dehradun () is the capital and the most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and is governed by the Dehradun Municipal Corporation, with the Uttarakhand Legislative As ...

, just off the nearby village of

Chandmari Chandmari is one of the oldest localities of Guwahati, Assam, India. Situated towards the eastern side of the city. It is home to All India Radio, Guwahati centre and a couple of academic institutions such as Holy Childs Convent, Bhaskar Bidyap ...

, nestled in the sal trees of the region – a location chosen for its isolated natural surroundings and their capacity to function as a barrier to microwave or radio noise.

References

{{coord missing, Uttarakhand Dehradun district Earth stations in India 1977 establishments in India