The growing role of the new space economy, the entry of new private players in the space sector, and enabling frameworks such as the Indian Space Policy, 2023, will propel India towards scaling up its global space economy from up to 3 per cent currently to a sizeable 9 per cent by 2030, a new report has said.
“India, as a rising space power with a long history of achievements and aspirations, is well-positioned to play a significant role in this new era of space exploration and development. These achievements are underpinned by the evolving regulatory framework designed to foster innovation and attract investments,” Sreeram Ananthasayanam, Partner, Deloitte India, and author of the report NewSpace: India Perspective has said.
The report has been jointly brought out by the global consultancy Deloitte and the apex industry chamber CII.
The report has especially commended the government for providing the private industry with a robust foundation of space infrastructure, a repository of existing technologies and active guidance to enable a seamless fusion of traditional expertise and modern innovation through entities such as the Indian Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) and NewSpace India Ltd (NSIL).
By transferring existing technologies to the private sector through IN-SPACe and NSIL since 2020, the Department of Space has been enabling emerging companies to build upon the national space agency the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)’s foundational technologies to reduce their development time and costs and helping them build advanced technologies, the report said.
Space-as-a-service
By driving technological advancements and innovation, space-as-a-service could potentially transform sectors such as telecommunications, agriculture, health, education, infrastructure, navigation, and strategic defence.
“Empowering the private sector amplifies the potential socio-economic impact of space applications. By finding innovative solutions to pressing challenges in areas such as agriculture, disaster management, or communication, private players are poised to bring tangible benefits to the lives of every citizen,” noted Ananthasayanam.
The report has also made several recommendations to further strengthen the fledgling Indian space sector at a time when the global space economy is expected to reach $1 trillion by 2040 from nearly $546 billion currently.
These include a detailed study on the tax reforms for supporting growth as well as making the end products globally competitive, a review of global initiatives and their impact on the sector for periodically refreshing the Indian Space Policy, 2023, and defining the actual size of the Indian space economy using a consistent methodology.
Creation of sustainable market demand for products of private start-ups, expanding the reach of ISRO’s collaborations to more remote institutes and research labs, the introduction of Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme and customs exemptions to encourage indigenous manufacturing capacity in a more cost-effective manner, and a comprehensive study on fully tapping the downstream capabilities of this sector, were equally important.