Rakesh Sharma

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Rakesh Sharma is also an Omani cricketer.

**Rakesh Sharma**
Intercosmos Cosmonaut

Nationality	Indian
Born	January 13, 1949 Patiala, Punjab, India
Occupation¹	Test Pilot
Rank	Squadron Leader (retired Wing Commander), Indian Air Force
Space time	7d 21h 40m
Selection	1982
Mission(s)	Soyuz T-11
Mission insignia
¹ previous or current

Rakesh Sharma (born January 13, 1949 in Patiala, Punjab, India) was the first Indian and 138th man to visit space.

Rakesh Sharma, then squadron leader and pilot with the Indian Air Force embarked on the mission in 1984 as part of a joint space program between the Indian Space Research Organisation and the Soviet Intercosmos space program and spent eight days in space aboard the Salyut 7 space station. Launched along with two other Soviet cosmonauts aboard Soyuz T-11 on the 2 April 1984, was 35-year-old Rakesh Sharma. During the flight, Squadron Leader Sharma conducted multi-spectral photography of northern India in anticipation of the construction of hydroelectric power stations in the Himalayas. In a famous incident, he was asked by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi how India looked from the space and he replied, Saare Jahan Se Achcha, (translates to better than all the world) which was from the first line of a famous poem by Muhammad Iqbal.

He was conferred with the honour of Hero of Soviet Union upon his return from space. The Government of India conferred its highest gallantry award(during peace time), the Ashoka Chakra on him and the other two Russian members of his mission.

Squadron Leader Sharma and his backup, Wing Commander Ravish Malhotra, also prepared an elaborate series of zero-gravity Yoga exercises which the former had practised aboard the Salyut 7. Retired with the rank of Wing Commander, Rakesh Sharma joined Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) as a test pilot. He was based at the Aircraft & Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE) in Bangalore and worked on the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft program.

Rakesh Sharma has now retired from active employment.

In November 2006 he took part in India's top scientists gathering [1] organized by ISRO which gave the green signal to an Indian manned space mission.