CHENNAI, (IANS) – A total of 30 space launches — commercial and non-commercial by government and private players– are being planned from India over the next 14 months from the Indian spaceport in Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh, the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) said on February 15.
Included in the proposed missions are the test flights relating to India’s human space mission, Gaganyaan.
This was stated by IN-SPACe, the regulator for the private sector in the space industry, in its integrated launch manifesto using the Indian Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) infrastructure.“About 30 launches are planned for 2023-24 (Q4) and 2024-25 from SDSC (Satish Dhawan Space Centre) half of which are catering to the commercial space sector of India with the rest being user-funded, scientific missions or technology test launches,” IN-SPACe said.
According to IN-SPACe, out of the 14 commercial missions identified, seven launches are being undertaken by New Space India Ltd — the commercial arm of the Department of Space — including the realization of two Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles (PSLV) from the L&T-HAL consortium.
This marks a substantial increase in launch activity compared to previous years and is a positive indicator of the expanding space ecosystem in the country.
This initiative aligns with the directives of the recently ratified Indian Space Policy, entrusting IN-SPACe with authorization of launch manifesto for launch infrastructure created through public expenditure. The launch manifesto comprehensively covers user-funded, scientific missions and other technology demonstration launches by ISRO along with the commercial launches and associated primary and co-sharing passengers. (Courtesy: https://indiawest.com/)
