The Kenya Space Agency has come out of its shell to clarify the report regarding the country’s demands for compensation from India, following the recent crash of some metallic object from the atmosphere, which landed on a village in Makueni.
“Our attention has been drawn to widely circulating disinformation on social media under the Subject: Notification of Compensation Demand for Space Debris Incident Originating from India Space Research Organization Mission,” reads a statement from the Kenya Space Agency (KSA).
The Acting Director General of KSA, Brigadier Hillary Kipkosgey in the statement, refuted the report that his agency as well as the Kenya Government were planning to request India for the Reparation demand to the tune of USD 100 Billion.
Apparently, the compensation was to cover damages caused by the metallic ring weighing over half-a-ton, which fell from India Space Research Organization’s Docking Experiment, Spadex, crashing onto a Kenyan village and risking lives of residents and destroying property in Makueni.
To which Brigadier Kipkosgey denies.
“The Kenya Space Agency wishes to clarify that investigations into the space object fragments incident in Mukuku Village, Makueni County, are still ongoing and the KSA has not reached any conclusions or attributed the space object to any space actor yet,” writes the agency director.
According to the latest statement from KSA, the claims for notification for compensation demand allegedly made by the Government of Kenya should therefore be ignored.
“Neither the Kenya Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs nor the Kenya Space Agency, nor any other Government of Kenya entity has made any such notification,” insists the Acting Director General.
The Brigadier explains further that the Kenya Space Agency was working with partners to identify the particular space object and related atmospheric activity that led to the dropping of the fragments in a populated area, and attribute ownership.
“Afterwards the general public will be advised as necessary in due course as the matter progresses and more information becomes available.”
KSA says the matter will be pursued through the laid down channels and as provided for under International Space Law.
Meanwhile members of the public were also advised to be cautious of unverified or unofficial statements on the matter, refrain from circulating false information and await official communications from Government Agencies.