India Prepares For $45 Billion Space Economy Driven By Private Firms; Reports Say

Last month, the government last month announced a ₹1 trillion Research, Development and Innovation Scheme to boost private sector advances in deep-technology sectors through concessional financing

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Summary
Summary of this article
  • India is preparing to scale its space economy to $40–45 billion within the next decade.

  • The government plans to establish the Bharatiya Antariksh Station by 2035 and aims for a human lunar landing by 2040.

  • Following the success of Chandrayaan-3, India is accelerating R&D with a ₹1 trillion innovation scheme to fund deep-tech projects and support its first crewed space mission targeted for early 2027.

India is gearing up for its space ambitions, targeting a sustained lunar presence within the next ten year as a part of becoming a developed economy by 2047 Vikasit Bharat, when India celebrates its independence centenary.

“By 2035, we’ll have a space station called Bharatiya Antariksh Station and by 2040 hopefully Indian human being landing on the surface of the Moon,” Indian Space Minister Jitendra Singh told Bloomberg News in an interview. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has intensified efforts to bring India shoulder to shoulder with China, which already operates its own space station and aims to send astronauts to the moon by 2030.

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“In space, we had a dismal economy until we opened up to the private sector, and now it has grown to about $8 billion,” Bloomberg reported citing Singh. “The pace of growth is so high that in the next eight to 10 years, we may reach $40–45 billion.”

Start Ups May Fuel India’s Space Ambition

As per the report, a large portion of this target is likely to be achieved by India’s space start-ups which is now about 400, involved in satellite manufacturing, launch services and space-based data analytics. India is aiming to capture 8-10% share of the global commercial space market the next ten years, Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman V. Narayanan said in August. India currently holds only 2% of global commercial space market.

The Success of Chandrayaan-3

India achieved a milestone in 2023 by becoming the first country to land a robotic spacecraft near the unexplored south pole of moon. The ISRO is on track for its first crewed mission into space in early 2027, the report said.

Last month, the government last month announced a ₹1 trillion Research, Development and Innovation Scheme to boost private sector advances in deep-technology sectors through concessional financing. It will finance projects that have a so-called Technology Readiness Level of 4 or above, which means the project is closer to going to market, the Bloomberg report said.

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