Over 40 funded startups working in space segment in India: Economic Survey

satellite

Over 40 funded startups are working in India in the space segment and the number is likely to increase in the coming years, with technology playing a big role and the recent reforms allowing private participation announced by the government, said the Economic Survey 2020-21 on January 29.

So far, these startups have teams and structure on space and satellite projects complementing the efforts of the government.

Also read: How a visit to Elon Musk’s SpaceX factory-inspired this young techie to build India’s first private earth-imaging satellite

India’s space programme is one of the most well-developed in the world and has achieved numerous successes through its state-owned agency, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) which is responsible for driving the space activities in India.

The government in June 2020 also opened up the space sector enabling the participation of private firms in the entire gamut of space activities. It has also established Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) for promoting industries and attracting investment in the space sector.

Further, ISRO will be sharing its infrastructure, transfer technology know-how for production and spin-off. These measures would help India become a manufacturing hub of space assets.

As per a Satellite Industry Association Report (2020), the global space economy was pegged at $366 billion in 2019, growing about 1.7 percent over 2018. The commercial satellite industry accounts for nearly 75 percent of the global space business.

PwC values the Indian space economy at $7 billion or roughly 2 percent of the global space economy.