India has resolved to leverage strengths of space warfare, says minister Jitendra Singh

Indian space sector start-ups would soon launch their own rockets, satellites, and satellite constellations, said Dr.Jitendra Singh, India's Minister of State, Science & Technology, Space. Speaking at theIndia Space Conclave, on the occasion of the first anniversary of the Indian Space Association, ISpA, the minister touched upon the impact of recently unveiled space-sector reforms in the country and how it led to the mushrooming of start-ups.

Referring to the reforms that were rolled out from 2020 June onwards, he said "Space reforms have unleashed the innovative potential of start-ups and within a short span of time, from a couple of Space Start-ups around three-four years back, today we have 102 start-ups working in cutting-edge areas of space debris management., nano-satellite, launch vehicle, ground systems, research, etc". The Minister added, with the integration of R&D, Academia, and Industry with equal stake, it is safe to say that a Space Revolution led by ISRO along with the Private Sector and Start-ups is on the horizon.

On some of the major initiatives by the private sector and commercial space activities being carried out, he said thatfive PSLVs (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles) are being produced by a partnership between Indian private firm L&T and state-run Defence and Aerospace firm Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. In addition to this, UK-based telecom firm OneWeb is all set to launch its satellites through the Indian Space Research Organization and its commercial arm NSIL (New Space India Limited).

In view of recent global conflicts,Dr Jitendra Singh said that the dual-use nature of space technology isemerging as an important multi-faceted enabler that provides unprecedented reach.He added that many nations are today focusing on developing their military space capabilities to ensure its safe, secure, and friendly use along with deterrence capability to deny it to adversaries, when necessary.

The Minister elaborated that India too has resolved to leverage the strengths of this emerging dimension of (Space)warfare and in fact, the Indian government is undertaking strong and decisive steps towards ensuring Atma Nirbharta (self-reliance) in the Space Sector. This is being done to ensure that India's private industrial capability and capacity are effectively energised and channelized to develop cutting-edge solutions which would give the country a decisive edge over our others in times to come, he said.

He also unveiled a sector report titled” Developing the space ecosystem in India: focusing on inclusive growth” along with Chairman ISpA, Jayant D Patil, Chairman, ISRO, S. Somnath.