Editorial: Lift space startups

The Telangana government has already unveiled its Spacetech policy, which aims to make Hyderabad India’s spacetech capital

Chandrayaan-3 marks another huge success for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). This takeoff also propelled the private space sector into the spotlight. Hyderabad-based Ananth Technologies contributed through power-switching modules, navigation systems, etc. Other Hyderabad-based companies Skyroot Aerospace and Dhruva Space Pvt Ltd have already made their mark in the sector. Skyroot’s Vikram-S rocket, launched last November, ended the government’s decades-old dominance. Skyroot’s rocket was literally the “prarambh” for private players after India made “space” for them in 2020. This was also a big success for Telangana as the startup was incubated at the state’s T-Hub. The global space industry is worth over $500 billion, with the US and China leading the spending. India has been in the global space market since the 1960s but its current share is a mere 2% — an estimated $9.6 billion. The country’s target is to reach $12.8 billion by 2025. The global space launch services market is projected to double, to $31.9 billion by 2029.

The space sector offers huge opportunities. For India to realise its space potential, creating the right ecosystem is critical. Global companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic have changed the way the space business works — bringing down costs and turnaround time. The formation of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center in 2020 to liaise between ISRO and the private sector and easing of regulations have helped. India is now home to over 100 spacetech startups and they have raised over $200 million in funding. Inc42 puts the opportunity in spacetech startups at $77 billion by 2030. It is important that the States enable the innovation ecosystem further and facilitate startups, especially since private players lack end-to-end capabilities. The Telangana government has already unveiled its Spacetech policy aimed at making Hyderabad India’s spacetech capital. The Indian Space Policy 2023 also envisages a larger role for the private sector. This is especially because India, considered a less costly alternative to European, Russian and Chinese launchers, is trying to pitch itself as a satellite launch facility. Last October, ISRO successfully put 36 UK-based OneWeb’s internet satellites into orbit. In July, India signed the Artemis Accord which aims to land the first astronauts on Mars. NASA and ISRO plan to launch a joint mission to the International Space Station next year. Denver-based Voyager Space has signed an MoU with ISRO to use Indian rockets and collaborate with the country’s space startups. Former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan’s call to establish an Asian Space Agency, along the lines of the European Space Agency, for taking up bigger space missions is timely. And ISRO must be further strengthened. The sector needs to create more space for the innovators, wherever they are, and that indeed should be the new rocket science!

---