Nine ISRO employee associations seek clarity on proposed private-sector shift

Nine ISRO employee associations have sought clarification from Chairperson V Narayanan over reports of shifting manufacturing and operational functions to private entities. They questioned ISRO's future role, employee prospects and recruitment, while IN-SPACe chief Pawan Goenka stressed public-private cooperation

New Delhi: Nine employee associations at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have written to the space agency’s Chairperson V Narayanan, seeking official clarification on the proposed transfer of its manufacturing and operational functions to private entities.

In a letter, dated September 4, the associations also raised questions about the agency’s future role, and the consequences for serving employees and future recruitment.

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“Private participation in defined commercial activities can coexist with a strong, publicly owned ISRO. What cannot be accepted without debate is a policy that reduces ISRO to a residual R&D (research and development) boutique while the realisation of the nation’s launch vehicles and the operation of its launch infrastructure pass out of public hands,” the letter said.

It pointed to the August 21 comments made by Pawan Goenka, chairperson of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), which promotes, enables, authorises and supervises various space activities of non-governmental entities.

Goenka, at a public event, reportedly said, “Eventually, ISRO will not make any launch vehicles and will not manufacture any launch vehicles. That will all be done by the private sector or PSU.” The employee associations claimed that these remarks have not been accompanied by any corresponding official communication from the Department of Space, explaining the approved policy, its legal and administrative basis, its phasing or its consequences for the existing workforce and future public recruitment.

“Technology developed by ISRO is a national asset. Its transfer must be transparent, accountable and consistent with strategic, safety and employment considerations — not presented to employees through newspaper reports,” the letter said.

It raised several other concerns. These include whether the design, development, realisation, integration, testing and launch of PSLV, LVM3, SSLV and successor vehicles will continue as ISRO functions or will cease.

Also, it asked about the implications of the proposed shift for sanctioned strength, existing vacancies, recruitment calendar and induction of scientific/technical/administrative/industrial manpower in all ISRO centres. In a post on X on Sunday, Goenka wrote that ISRO and private companies would have to work together to ensure India reaches its target of 50 launches a year by 2030.

“A goal of this scale cannot be achieved by one organisation alone,” he said. The IN-SPACe chairperson also highlighted that ISRO’s research would continue to push the frontiers of what is possible. He added, “Private industry must translate that momentum into manufacturing at scale: more rockets, more satellites, more launch capacity and new technologies.”