Govt Receives 27 Proposals From Private Entities For Undertaking Space Activities In India

The government has so far received 27 proposals from private entities for undertaking various space activities in India, Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Jitendra Singh said on Thursday (22 July).

In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Singh said that the types of proposals include building and launching of launch vehicles; building, owning and operating satellites; providing satellites based services; establishing ground segments; research Partnerships and providing mission services.

"The global space economy is poised to grow over a trillion dollar in the next two decades. With the space sector reforms, Indian Private Space Industry is slated to contribute to the core elements of global space economy ─ space-based services, launch services, manufacturing of launch vehicles and satellites, establishment of ground segment and launch infrastructure ─ to a considerable extent," the minister said in the statement.

Participation of private sector including academic institutions, start-ups and industries in end-to-end space activities is expected to expand the national space economy, generate more employment opportunities and create better manufacturing facilities, he added.

In a written reply to another question regarding involvement of the private players in the space sector, the minister stated that NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), a Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE), as part of one of its mandates “to build launch vehicles through Indian Industry”, has already floated a Request for Proposal (RFP) for end-to-end realisation of five Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) through Indian Industry partners.