New Delhi  -  An Indian rocket blasted off Monday, carrying 10 satellites, including the country's latest remote-sensing satellite and eight foreign satellites, officials said.

The Indian Space Research Organization's latest satellite launch vehicle, the PSLV-C9, took off at 9:23 am (0353 GMT) from the agency's main launch station, the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, off the country's eastern coast and 90 kilometres north of Chennai city.

The PSLV, or Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, was carrying the Cartosat-2A remote-sensing satellite along with an Indian mini-satellite and eight foreign "nano" satellites built by universities and research institutes in Germany and Canada. (dpa)