PRIVATE
SECTOR PARTICIPATION IN SPACE - SCIENCE AND TECH
News: Vikram-S, India’s first private rocket, lifts off from ISRO spaceport
What's
in the news?
● It was a historic moment when Vikram-S, India’s first privately-developed rocket, lifted off precisely at 11.30 AM on November 18, 2022 from Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) launchpad in Sriharikota.
Key
takeaways:
● Developed by Hyderabad-based startup Skyroot Aerospace Private Limited, the 6-metre tall vehicle hit a peak altitude of 89.5 kilometers and then splashed into the Bay of Bengal about five minutes after the launch. This mission was titled Prarambh
Vikram
- S:
●
The rocket Vikram-S is a single-stage solid fuelled, sub-orbital
rocket developed over two years by incorporating advanced technologies
including carbon composite structures and 3D-printed components.
●
Equipped with a gross lift off mass of 545kg, and payload mass of 80 kg, Vikram-S
carried with it three customer payloads, which will map the measurement and
validation of certain flight parameters and payload integration processes.
●
This was a technology demonstration flight
to showcase the capabilities of the company. The rocket will help validate the
technologies that will be used in the subsequent Vikram-1 orbital vehicle of
Skyroot that is planned for launch next year, subject to technical clearance by
IN-SPACe.
Skyroot:
● Founded by Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka in June 2018 Skyroot Aerospace is a two-time national award-winning space startup, with 200 employees, and is the largest funded private space start up in India with ₹526 crore raised as capital till date.
Sub-orbital
flight:
● Sub-orbital flight are those vehicles which are travelling slower than the orbital velocity – meaning it is fast enough to reach outer space but not fast enough to stay in an orbit around the Earth.
India's
Private participation in space sector:
●
Although Skyroot will be the first private
company to launch its rocket, others are not far behind.
●
For example, Agnikul Cosmos, whose
semi-cryogenic Agnilet engine was test- fired for 15 seconds on Tuesday at
Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO’s) vertical testing facility at
Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS), Thiruvananthapuram.
●
ISRO’s Small Satellite Launch Vehicles
(SSLV) are also likely to be manufactured and operated by private players soon.
●
As for private satellite missions, ISRO’s
heaviest launch vehicle Mark III launched 36 OneWeb satellites (India’s Bharti
is a stakeholder).
● The space agency will be launching another fleet of 36 satellites for the company as well. Other than that, the space agency has also launched at least four satellites made by students.
Indian
private startups in space industry:
Several Indian startups
have started their operations. Some of the startups include:
●
Digantara:
It is an Indian private company working to secure long-term space flight safety
by developing space debris tracking and monitoring services.
●
Bellatrix
Aerospace: Headquartered in Bangalore, it is an Indian private
aerospace manufacturer and small satellite company.
●
Tathya
Earth: The company leverages deep learning algorithms for
satellite imagery and maritime data to identify important real-time trends in
the global economy.
●
Skyroot,
another startup founded by two former ISRO scientists. The company is building
“Vikram” rockets from scratch, which are the first brand of rockets made by the
private sector in India.
● Agnikul Cosmos, a startup founded by two 21-year-old college students became the world's first company to successfully test a 3D printed rocket engine, which is a new and upcoming tech in the space industry and is predicted to replace conventional assembly models.
What
are the circumstances boosting private participation in the Indian space
sector?
1.
Increasing Demand:
2.
Overall growth of the space sector:
●
Private sector participation is needed to
ensure overall growth of the space sector.
●
ISRO has a strong association with the
industry, particularly with Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) like Hindustan
Aeronautics Limited and large private sector entities like Larsen and Toubro.
3.
Country’s security:
●
The most basic way to secure our space
capabilities is to distribute them across many different satellites and
spacecraft, so that continuity is unaffected even if an adversary manages to
disable one or more of our satellites.
●
For instance, the US is highly vulnerable
in space because it depends on thousands of its satellites. But it is also best
equipped to deal with a potential attack on its space assets because it can
find alternatives to switch to.
4.
International trends and experience:
●
Elon
Musk’s “SpaceX” and its high-profile projects have
highlighted the increasing significance of the private players in the space
sector.
●
In India, despite the various strategic,
security and regulatory constraints, a limited private ecosystem has evolved
around the ISRO.
●
It will enable Indian Industry to be an
important player in the global space economy.
●
With this, there is an opportunity for large-scale employment in the technology
sector and India becoming a Global technology powerhouse.
5.
Greater pool of resources:
●
Public resources - land, labour, capital
are limited. Private sector participation will open a new pool of resources and
talent.
●
It will bring more funding, and experience into space exploration activities.
6.
Human Capital:
●
Restricting space activities to ISRO,
limits proper utilisation of talent all
over the country.
●
With demographic dividend, private sector
participation can exploit the talent across the nation contributing a lot to
space explorations in India.
7.
Technological advancement:
●
Commercialisation
will also develop better technologies which are important.
●
It will allow integration of many other
technologies like artificial intelligence into space exploration activities.
●
With experience from space activities, the
private sector can increase the role of technology in other areas.
8.
Risk Sharing:
●
Every launch consists of various risks.
Private sector helps in sharing the risk of cost factors.
●
Failure costs will be distributed. Also
with increased private participation, failures will reduce due to increased
available human capital and mind.
9.
Commercial demand:
●
There is a need to enhance internet
connectivity for the masses, which is another demand pull factor for increased
commercial interest in space.
●
Asteroid
mining is also another potential area that looks promising,
with scope for monetisation and disrupting commodity markets.
10.
Research and Development Activities:
●
These reforms will allow ISRO to focus
more on new technologies, exploration missions and human spaceflight
programmes.
● Some of the planetary exploration missions will also be opened up to the private sector through an ‘announcement of opportunity’ mechanism.
Challenges
faced by private sector in space industry:
Despite this achievement, though the
space economy is a $440 billion global sector, India has less than 2% share in
the sector.
1.
Brain drain:
●
In India, brain drain has increased by 85%
since 2005 and thereby low private participation. This is due to:
2.
Investor confidence:
●
The hindrances faced by private space
ventures to attract investors, making it virtually non-feasible to operate in
India.
3.
Lack of clarity in laws:
●
The absence of a framework to provide
transparency and clarity in laws is the reason for the lack of independent
private participation in space.
4.
Timelines not fixed:
●
Due to the technicalities involved in the
space business, timelines on licensing,
issuance of authorisation, and continuous supervision mechanism need to
be defined into phases.
5.
Lack of insurance and indemnification clarity in space law:
●
The lack of indemnity clarification,
particularly about who or which entity undertakes the liability in case of a
mishap, creates challenges for a smooth rollout.
6.
Licensing issues:
●
The private entities in this sector
currently work on leased licenses from ISRO rather than having their own IP for
a product.
7.
Data Risk:
●
Though space gives an opportunity to
entrepreneurs, raw data of ISRO in the hands of the public is sensitive and
consists of danger of misuse or improper utilisation of data.
8.
Regulation:
●
Though it is a profitable investment,
regulation of private sector participation is not easy.
●
The time taken for regulatory clearances
and unstable political institutions can cause delays and hurdles in decision
making of investors.
9.
Revenue loss:
●
ISRO will lose a fair amount of money it
is earning through its space activities. This will reduce government revenue.
10.
Unfair commercial practices:
●
Allowing the private sector may lead to
lobbying and unfair means to get space projects or launch of any satellite for
their own profit.
● It may also lead to leakage of sensitive information by private players to other countries and companies to make profit.
Government
Initiatives:
1.
National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe):
●
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.
●
Mandate
and responsibilities:
○
It is mandated the task of promoting, authorising
and licensing private players to carry out space activities.
○
It is responsible for devising mechanisms
to offer sharing of technology, expertise facilities free of cost (if feasible)
to promote non-government private
entities (NGPEs).
2.
ISRO
facilities:
●
ISRO shares its expertise in matters
pertaining to quality and reliability protocols, documentation and testing
procedure through IN-SPACe’s ‘interface mechanism’.
●
It also facilitates the usage of ISRO
facilities by private entities.
3.
New Space India Ltd (NSIL):
● It is mandated to transfer the matured technologies developed by the ISRO to Indian industries.
WAY
FORWARD:
●
The laws
need to be reformed and reframed into multiple sections, each to address
specific parts of the value chain and in accordance with the Outer Space
Treaty.
●
India can learn from France in license timelines where there are four obtainable
licences in addition to case-by-case authorisation.
●
India can also learn from several western
countries with an evolved private space industry, where there is a cap on liability and the financial damages
that need to be paid.
●
The insurance provision can be brought in
by the law. For example, in Australia space operators are required to hold
insurance of up to AUD$100 million under Australian space law.
●
For independent existence, Indian space
private companies need to generate their own
IP for their product or services. With this, the market for them should
also be not limited to ISRO. This will help open the door to global markets.
● ISRO needs to go beyond taking small manufacturing support from private players and start involving them in complex operations. This will help both players by reducing costs and turnaround time with innovation and advanced technology.
The space sector can play
a vital role in realising the dream of
‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ and fully the potential of India’s youth and
entrepreneurs. Both government and private entities need to work in tandem, and
an effective long-term stable policy will be fruitful in the longer run.