60 Startups Registered With ISRO Since ‘Unlocking’ Of Indian Space Sector: MoS Jitendra Singh

Union Minister of State (MoS) For Science and Technology Jitendra Singh on Monday (July 11) said that around 60 startups had registered with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) since the purported ‘unlocking’ of the Indian space sector.

By ‘unlocking’, the MoS was referring to the opening of the space sector to private players

He further added that the proposals received from startups related to space debris management, nano-satellites, launch vehicles, ground systems, among others.

“The passion of private players and innovative startups will augment the role of the Department of Space in protecting India’s interests in space by developing all-round capabilities in the domains of space transportation, debris management, infrastructure and applications,” said Singh.

The minister made the comments while inaugurating the ISRO System for Safe & Sustainable Operation (IS4OM) in Bengaluru.

Notably, in May, Singh said that more than 55 spacetech startups had registered with ISRO since opening up of the space sector two years ago.

The renewed focus on the spacetech sector is part of the government’s policy to spur startups in the domain. In June 2020, the Union government opened the space sector to allow participation of private firms. Post that, the government also set up a host of institutions to promote the spacetech sector.

As part of this, the country’s first public sector undertaking (PSU) in the spacetech sector, New Space India Limited (NSIL), was set up. Along with that, Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) was also instituted with the aim of promoting and regulating the activities of non-government and private entities in the domain.

In June, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the government was working on a new space policy to enhance the ease of doing business in the sector. Previously, Singh had also said that the Centre was mulling allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in the spactech sector soon. 

A recent report pegged India’s space economy at around INR 36,794 Cr for the fiscal year 2020-21. The report also noted that the estimated size of India’s space economy, as a percentage of the GDP, slipped from 0.26% in 2011-12 to 0.19% in 2020-21.

More than 120 active spacetech startups were operational in the country as of 2020 and the number has only grown since then. An Inc42 report estimates that the Indian commercial spacetech market will grow to $77 Bn by 2030.

The space is populated by startups like Bellatrix, Dhruva Space, Pixxel, among others.

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