In just three years, the number of startups in the space sector increased to 47 in 2021 from 11 in 2019, an indicator of the pace of growth in the space sector in India, it said.
At present, India accounts for only about 2% of the space economy, way behind the major economies such as the US and China. With recent policy initiatives and private sector participation, the Indian space sector expects to capture a larger share of the global space economy, which was close to $447 billion in 2020.
The government recently updated the SpaceCom and SpaceRS policies, liberalising the traditional satellite communication and remote sensing sectors. In 2021, the government also released new rules for drones as well as guidelines for acquiring and producing geospatial data.
Under various space tech initiatives, the interim independent nodal agency under the Department of Space-Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) has received close to 40 proposals from large industries, MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises), startups and academia. The proposals cover a broad range of activities, cutting across both upstream (launch vehicle and satellite manufacturing) as well as downstream (earth observation applications, communications, etc.)
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Five private satellites have been tested at ISRO facilities and four student satellites were launched aboard the PSLV C-51. The national registration mechanism for space objects has been implemented, with five satellites registered. A total of six memorandums of understanding have been signed with private or academic entities for sharing technical expertise and facilities.
About 75 Indian startups are categorised under ‘space technology’ but about 101 startups cater to the larger space sector. But these numbers are not exhaustive, as some of the startups registered under other categories are also involved in the space domain, said the survey.
Under the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan (approved in October 2021), the government aims to provide multimodal connectivity to various economic zones and integrate the infrastructure linkages for movement of people, goods and services to improve logistics efficiency.
Gati Shakti will bring 16 ministries together for integrated planning and coordinated implementation of infrastructure connectivity projects such as Bharatmala, Sagarmala, inland waterways and UDAN. It will also leverage technology extensively, including spatial planning tools with ISRO imagery developed by Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geoinformatics, said the survey.
