ISRO affirms it will not be privatised, will remain India's principal space institution

ISRO “would neither be privatised nor will its importance be diminished”.

BENGALURU: Two days after nine employee bodies at Isro centres sought written clarity on the future role of the organisation amid space-sector reforms, Isro on Sunday hinted at its “next chapter” while categorically stating that it “would neither be privatised nor will its importance be diminished”. “Isro will continue to remain India’s principal institution for advanced space R&D, national and strategic missions, space science and exploration, and critical and frontier space capabilities. Participation of the private sector is not about reducing Isro’s role. It is about enabling Isro to focus even more strongly on the next generation of India’s space programme, while industry scales mature technologies and capabilities,” Isro said. Also read:Isro will remain ‘bedrock of Indian space sector’, says Goenka What is changing is not the importance of Isro, but the scale and structure of India’s space ecosystem, it said, adding that the space-sector reforms institutionalised through the Indian Space Policy 2023, along with progressive liberalisation of FDI policy, aim to create a larger, stronger and globally competitive Indian space ecosystem. “Industry, start-ups and academia are being enabled to participate across the space value chain, complementing and multiplying Isro’s capabilities. The reforms should therefore be seen as ecosystem expansion and capability multiplication, not privatisation,” Isro said. As India’s industrial and technological capabilities have grown, mature and scalable activities can increasingly be undertaken by Indian industry, it said, adding Isro has already transferred multiple technologies to industry. “Transferring a mature technology doesn’t mean Isro is withdrawing from that domain. It enables large-scale production, commercialisation, innovation and access to global markets while allowing Isro’s scientific and technical manpower to concentrate on advanced research, next-generation technologies and complex national missions,” It said. The transition is therefore towards an “Isro-led national space ecosystem.” “...Isro’s role will progressively strengthen in areas where its scientific expertise matters most: frontier R&D, advanced technologies, human spaceflight, next-generation launch systems, deep-space and planetary missions and strategic national capabilities,” it said. The agency added that it’ll continue developing cutting-edge technologies, including advanced payloads for communication, navigation and Earth observation, sensors, propulsion systems and other critical technologies. “Meanwhile, mature and routinely manufactured systems can increasingly be scaled through industry. Production of mature launch vehicles, routine satellites and other established systems can increasingly be undertaken by industry or PSUs through appropriate competitive processes,” Isro said. This, it says, allows Isro to devote more resources and scientific manpower to the next generation of technologies and missions, while the wider ecosystem provides the investment, manufacturing capacity and scale required by an expanding national space programme. Pointing out that the transition was important in the context of Space Vision 2047, it said technologies needed for establishing the Bharatiya Antariksh Station by 2035, crewed mission to Moon by 2040, developing next-generation and reusable launch systems, pursuing sustained lunar and planetary exploration, and establishing India as a major global space power, require Isro to remain focused on advanced research and capabilities that cannot simply be substituted by commercial activity. The objective is “therefore to enable industry to scale mature capabilities while Isro pushes India towards the next technological frontier”. “The Department of Space provides overall policy direction, Isro remains the core organisation for advanced R&D, technology development and national missions. IN-SPACe facilitates and authorises the participation of non-government entities, while NSIL undertakes commercialisation and industry-led utilisation of mature capabilities,” Isro said.

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It added that industry and start-ups contribute investment, innovation, manufacturing capacity and market access. “At the same time, ownership and control of critical national space infrastructure and strategic capabilities will continue to remain with the Govt. Private participation in operations and services will be enabled where appropriate and will remain subject to national-security, safety and other regulatory requirements. Strategic and nationally critical capabilities will continue to be governed by security, safety, quality and national-interest considerations,” it said.

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