ISRO and IN-SPACe Deny Privatisation Claims Following Employee Concerns

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the chairman of IN-SPACe, Pawan Kumar Goenka, have dismissed claims that the agency is being privatised. The statements follow a joint letter from nine ISRO employee associations dated September 4, which sought clarification on whether the government intended to transfer satellite and launch vehicle manufacturing to private firms. The associations cited previous remarks by Dr. Goenka suggesting that ISRO would eventually stop manufacturing launch vehicles, raising concerns about future recruitment and sanctioned strength.

Dr. Goenka described the narrative of a diminishing ISRO as misleading. He stated that ISRO will remain the bedrock of the Indian space sector while concentrating on advanced research, strategic missions, and complex infrastructure, such as the Bharatiya Antariksh Station by 2035 and a crewed lunar mission by 2040. ISRO further clarified that suggestions of privatisation are baseless and incorrect. The agency explained that transferring mature technology to the industry is part of an ISRO led national space ecosystem established by the Indian Space Policy 2023.

According to ISRO, the goal is to grow the national space economy from approximately 8.4 billion dollars to 44 billion dollars by 2033. The agency noted that India now has over 450 space startups, compared to a few in 2020. Government ownership of critical national space infrastructure will be maintained. These developments occurred as ISRO successfully launched its first Earth imaging satellite of the year, the EOS-05, from Sriharikota.