The INSAT-3E was launched overnight from French Guiana by the European Space Agency (ESA), which will also put into lunar orbit its explorer SMART-1 in the ESA's first moon mission.

"It is a proud moment for me from the Indian side to witness this great event," Madhavan Nair, the chief of Indian Space Research Organisation, said in a statement.

The launch had been delayed twice to allow extra checks on the INSAT-3E after an alert from a Japanese manufacturer of components.

Nair said a control facility in the southern Indian state of Karnataka took control of the INSAT-3E shortly after the launch.

"The MCF (Master Control Facility) has acquired signals from INSAT-3E and its performance so far is normal," said Nair.

"We hope we will be able to complete the remaining operations and make it a grand success for the national space programme."

The launch of the 2,775-kilogramme (6,105-pound) satellite, which has 24 transponders that receive radio signals, is aimed at boosting India's participation in the global communications market.

The Indian space organisation plans three satellite launches a year. The Indian cabinet this month approved an ambitious plan to send an unmanned mission to the moon by 2008, budgeting 83 million dollars for the project.

The European explorer SMART-1 will make its way slowly to the moon and start making observations in December 2004.

SPACE.WIRE