Ahmedabad: In a move to promote private entities in the space sector, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the headquarters of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) at Bopal, Ahmedabad today. IN-SPACe will act as a single-window, independent nodal agency to take care of all the needs of the private sector. The programme also witnessed the exchange of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) between IN-SPACe and private sector companies working in the field of space-based applications and services.
Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister termed the launch of IN-SPACe as a ‘watch this space’ moment for the Indian space industry as he said, it is a precursor to many development and opportunities. He said “IN-SPACe will give an opportunity to the youth of India to showcase their talent to the best minds of India. Whether they are working in the government or in the private sector, IN-SPACe will create great opportunities for all.” The Prime Minister further elaborated “IN-SPACe has the potential to revolutionize India’s space industry. So this is what I would say – ‘Watch this space’. IN-SPACe is for space, IN-SPACe is for pace, and IN-SPACe is for ace.”
The Prime Minister said that for a very long time, the private sector in the space industry has been viewed merely as a vendor, a system that always blocked the ways of progress for the private sector in the industry. He added that IN-SPACe will reform the space sector by freeing it from all restrictions, and by supporting the private industry. “The private sector will not just remain a vendor but will play the role of a big winner in the space sector. When the strength of government space institutions and the passion of India’s private sector will meet, not even the sky will be the limit”, he added.
Modi said that IN-SPACe needs to work continuously for making the gains of space technology accessible to the people of the country. He noted that the global space industry is valued at 400 billion US dollars and has the potential to become a 1 trillion dollar industry by 2040. He emphasized that India needs to increase its share in the global space industry and the private sector will play a big role in that. The Prime Minister also saw a strong role for India in the fields of space tourism and space diplomacy. “I assure you that this process of reforms in the space sector will continue uninterruptedly. The private sector must be heard and understood and business possibilities should be analyzed properly, for this,” he added.
The establishment of IN-SPACe was announced in June 2020. It is an autonomous and single window nodal agency in the Department of Space for the promotion, encouragement and regulation of space activities of both government and private entities. It also facilitates the usage of ISRO facilities by private entities.
– global bihari bureau
