India’s Space Ambition: Navigating the ‘Final’ Frontier

Analysis

By Angana Guha Roy 

On January 29, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) successfully completed a century of launches from its spaceport at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh with the 17th launch of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV). In this mission, the NVS-02 navigation satellite was successfully injected into the intended Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit. The mission was also the first of 10 orbital launches planned by India in 2025, which would mark a domestic launch record.

India’s space ecosystem is growing. In the recent past, the planned space explorations were consciously planned to look at India’s long-standing objective to establish itself as a stakeholder power in the global space economy. The unmanned Chandrayaan mission in August 2023 and the upcoming Gaganayaan mission, India’s first human space flight program, is a step towards that.

On the operational front, India’s Department of Space (DoS) oversees policy implementation, international cooperation, and dispute resolution in space activities. It works in close cooperation with internal stakeholders like IN-SPACe, ISRO and NSIL as well as several industrial stakeholders. Moving away from operational roles, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) focuses on research and development of new space technologies and applications, to concentrate on innovation. Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) acts as a single-window clearance and authorization body for space activities, bridging the gap between ISRO and private entities. The NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) is responsible for commercializing technologies developed by public expenditure, manufacturing, leasing, or procuring space assets.

India’s Space Ecosystem

 As compared to the US and China, the two largest space economies valued at $596 billion and $320 billion respectively, India’s space economy is currently valued at $8.4 billion. Currently accounting for 2% of the global space economy India envisages capturing 8% of the global space market by 2033 and growing its space economy to $44 billion.

In the reforms introduced in 2020, India’s space industry, driven by the Indian Space Research Organization, expanded the involvement of private players in end-to-end space activities. In line with NASA's NextSTEP, the Government incorporated IN-Space and NSIL to regulate and promote private sector participation in a range of space-related activities.  IN- Space designed to ease regulatory compliances through single video clearance encourages indigenous production of satellites, launch vehicles, and other space hardware. The efficient regulatory reforms have enabled a 200% increase in startups in the space sector.

India’s Space Policy of 2023 established a dynamic and composite framework to implement the vision for enhancing India’s potential in the Space sector through enhanced private participation. The policy clearly mandates the role each incorporated and involved agency should play along with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), the principal research and development arm of the Department of Space, overseen by the Prime Minister of India, with the Chairman of ISRO also serving as the chief executive of the Department of Space.

It underlines that ISRO will “transition out of the existing practice of being present in the manufacturing of operational space systems focusing on R&D in advanced technology, providing newer systems and realisation of space objects for meeting national prerogatives”. The policy specifically mentions that the entire gamut of space activities, including the establishment and operation of space objects, ground-based assets and related services, such as communication, remote sensing, navigation, etc., is now open to the private sector. Satellites could be self-owned, procured or leased; communication services could be over India or outside; and remote sensing data could be disseminated in India or abroad.

In 2024 India approved the amendment in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy on the space sector.  Under the new directives, the satellite sub-sector has been divided into three different activities with defined limits for foreign investment in each sector. As per the previous FDI policy, FDI was permitted in the establishment and operation of Satellites through the Government approval route only.  In line with the vision that Indian Space Policy 2023 lays out, the Union Cabinet has eased the FDI policy on the Space sector by prescribing liberalized FDI thresholds for various sub-sectors/activities. Under the amended FDI policy, 100% FDI is allowed in space sector. The liberalized entry routes under the amended policy are aimed to attract potential investors to invest in Indian companies in space.

Can India be Postured in the Global Space Race?

From military surveillance to resource control, space represents a domain for strategic advantage, Unlike the erstwhile "Space Race" during the Cold War era between the US and USSR the new "space race" is contemplated to be driven by increased competition between multiple countries and private companies to explore and utilize space for technological advancement, resource extraction, and strategic military purposes. It is viewed to be characterized by a wider range of players and a focus on innovation in areas like reusable rockets, lunar bases, and Mars missions. Through various facets of competition and cooperation as in projects like the International Space Station (ISS) tensions can arise over territorial claims or resource rights in space. Despite established regulations under the Outer Space Treaty and the Artemis Accords, new commercial activities pose a challenge to existing legal frameworks.

In 2024 in testimony before a Senate Armed Services subcommittee, John D. Hill, deputy assistant secretary of defense for space and missile defense, outlined the need for urgent action to maintain U.S. leadership in space. Despite a 2% decrease,  the budget for NASA in fiscal year 2024 was $24.875 billion compared to China’s budgetary allocation, which stood at $19 billion.  In 2024, global government expenditure for space programs hit a record of approximately 135 billion US dollars. Funding in India's space sector plummeted by 55 per cent in 2024 to $59.1 million from $130.2 million the previous year. Globally, space companies raised about $28 billion over the last five years, while their Indian counterparts secured approximately $354 million in the same period. The space sector got a financial boost with an allocation of approximately $1.5 billion dollars.

The idea of posturing India in the global space race is too premature. India’s space ecosystem is still emerging. Building this ecosystem is essential for long-term growth. In a significant step, India is developing future-ready defence technology in the domain of space.

Acknowledging the importance of the integration of space technology into India’s defence strategies Dr Subba Rao Pavuluri, President of SIA-Indian in a statement pointed out, “The integration of space technology into defence strategies has become indispensable in today’s geopolitical landscape.”

The establishment of the Defence Space Agency (DSA) further highlights India’s willingness to develop operational preparedness for space-centric warfare. By expanding its workforce and operational scope, the DSA is well-positioned to manage critical space assets, ensuring that India remains prepared for evolving challenges in the space domain.

The Way Forward

The Space Policy 2023 is a forward-looking document reflecting a laid-out vision and good intentions. As India moves towards privatization of the space sector, national space legislation is required to address evolving space activities and global space governance challenges.

However, there is currently a draft version of the Indian National Space Legislation, the Space Activities Bill 2017 (IND). This draft Bill is important as it contains rules that apply not only to Indian citizens but also to foreigners wishing to launch out of India. The bill confers significant power to the central government to create relevant rules, to formulate processes for distributing and authorising licenses for commercial space activities, to create and maintain a register for space objects, and to address unauthorised commercial space activity amounting to punishment up to 3 years or more.

To conclude, despite opening the space sector to private players, the Government of India remains a key stakeholder. The efficiency of the sector demands the urgent attention of the primary stakeholder in not only initiating national space legislation but also streamlining the operational timeframe, and regulatory framework of the regulatory agencies.

Disclaimer: This paper is the author's individual scholastic contribution and does not necessarily reflect the organization's viewpoint.