Space reforms doesn't mean privatisation of ISRO: Sivan

The aim of the reforms announced in the space sector is to only increase private participation and it doesn’t amount to privatisation of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), its chairman and space secretary K Sivan said on Thursday (August 20).

He said the reforms announced on June 24 will be a “real game-changer”. The world over, there is a healthy trend of the private sector taking part in space programmes, he said.

The reforms intend to enable private players to carry out the space activities being done by ISRO now, he said in a webinar titled  ‘Unlocking of India’s Potential in Space Sector’.

“The activities of ISRO are going to increase and ISRO will be able to better utilise its resources in taking up developmental as well as capacity building activities of the government, rather than the routine production activity,” he said.

He said this will allow ISRO to focus on technology development and capacity building. It will provide private players a platform to participate in national missions, he said.

Sivan said that the draft of the proposed space activity bill will be placed before the Union Cabinet for approval soon.

Principal Scientific Advisor K Vijay Raghavan, Mahindra group chairman Anand Mahindra, and Bharti Enterprises chairman Sunil Mittal were among those who took part in the webinar.

The reforms envisage greater private participation in space activities — from building rockets, building, and launching satellites to planetary exploration missions. The government announced the formation of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) to encourage private companies in the space sector.

Related news: ISRO, private cos to collaborate for space-related work: K Sivan

Private companies, which have so far been restricted to supplying components to Isro, will be able to build their own rockets and satellites and use ISRO’s facilities to launch them.

Sivan said IN-SPACe will be an autonomous body with its own chairman and directorate.

He said IN-SPACe and ISRO will have no role in each other’s functioning. However, IN-SPACe will make case-specific decisions on the utilisation of ISRO’s facilities by private players, he said.

Sivan said the reforms will help meet India’s growing demand for space-based applications, especially in view of the government’s push for digital initiatives.