• Authorised defence labs have realised NavIC-enabled receiver modules for strategic applications, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said.

• NavIC is an indigenous satellite-based navigation system.

• The minister said there is also an increase in the number of NavIC-enabled smart mobile phone models in the Indian market.

• He said NavIC performance is at par with foreign Global Positioning Systems and it’s a strong alternative to the GPS within the coverage area.

• Google Maps is an application which uses location data from Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). Like any other GNSS, NavIC provides the location data to map applications like Google Maps. 

• The usage of NavIC services has increased since its launch in the sectors like transportation and personal mobility. 

• The ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH) has mandated fitting NavIC-based AIS-140 compliant vehicle trackers in all public and commercial vehicles. 

Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC)

• NavIC is the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) developed by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). 

• It is an independent regional navigation system designed to provide accurate position information service to users in India as well as the region extending up to 1,500 km from its boundary, which is its primary service area. 

• IRNSS is envisaged to provide two types of services, namely Standard Positioning Service (SPS) and Restricted Service (RS) and provides a position accuracy of better than 20 m in the primary service area. 

• NavIC can be extensively used for positioning, navigation and timing applications in a variety of civil and commercial activities.

Some applications are:

• Terrestrial, aerial and marine navigation

• Disaster management

• Vehicle tracking and fleet management

• Integration with mobile phones

• Precise timing

• Mapping and geodetic data capture

• Terrestrial navigation aid for hikers and travellers

• Visual and voice navigation for drivers.

• There are eight operational satellites in the IRNSS series, namely IRNSS-1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E, 1F, 1G and 1I. 

• The launch of PSLV-39/IRNSS-1H was unsuccessful and the satellite could not reach orbit.

• Three of these satellites are in geostationary orbit (GEO) while the remaining in geosynchronous orbits (GSO) that maintain an inclination of 29° to the equatorial plane. 

• Currently, the government has not taken any measures to incentivise the use of NavIC by civilians. 

NavIC-based vehicle tracking

• To improve the safety of passengers and to enable rapid response in case of an emergency, the ministry of road transport and highways has mandated that, all new commercial and public vehicles shall be fitted with vehicle tracking units and panic buttons in accordance to Automotive Industry Standards (AIS-140) with effect from April 1, 2019. 

• As per AIS-140 standard, all the vehicle tracking units shall be NavIC-enabled and the certifying agencies for the compliance are Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) and International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT).

• Towards the speedy implementation and enforcement of this mandate, ISRO has helped ARAI and ICAT with establishing their test methodology towards NavIC performance and helped them calibrate their simulators for NavIC support. 

• At present, more than 100 companies have produced and certified NavIC-enabled vehicle tracking devices. 

Manorama Yearbook app is now available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store