Parliament Question: Space Startups

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF SPACE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4049 TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12, 2026 SPACE STARTUPS 4049. SHRI LAVU SRI KRISHNA DEVARAYULU: Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state: (a) the number of space startups recognised and supported by the Government in the country since the opening of the space sector specially in Andhra Pradesh, State and UT-wise; (b) the details of financial, technical and incubation support provided to space startups through Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), New Space India Limited (NSIL) and other Government initiatives during the last three years; (c) whether the Government has undertaken any measures to promote participation of startups in satellite manufacturing, launch services, downstream applications and space-based technologies and if so, the details thereof; (d) whether the Government proposes to establish or support additional space incubation centres, testing facilities or innovation hubs in Andhra Pradesh to strengthen the State's space technology ecosystem; and (e) the steps being taken to facilitate technology transfer, private investment and global market access for Indian space startups?ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES & PENSIONS AND IN THE PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE (DR. JITENDRA SINGH): **** (a) As per the DPIIT Start-up India Portal, around 440 space technology startups are registered in India. IN-SPACe has granted 113 authorisations to 52 Non-Government Entities (NGEs) to carry out various space activities, out of which 18 are start-ups, the details of which is enclosed at Annexure-I. (b) The details of financial, technical and incubation support provided to space startups through Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) are enclosed at Annexure-II. Further, NSIL, in coordination with IN-SPACe, has been transferring various technologies developed at ISRO/ Department of Space. As on date, NSIL has signed 118 Technology Transfer Agreements for transferring 83 technologies developed at ISRO/ Department of Space to Indian Industry. This includes critical space technologies like Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) technology, Indian Mini Satellite-1 (IMS-1) Bus, ISRO Laser Gyro (ILG), Tri-band (S, X, Ka) Antenna Feed, Ceramic Servo Accelerometer (CSA), X band Mini-SAR and Low Temperature Co-Fired Ceramic (LTCC) Multi Chip Module technology. NSIL has transferred many technologies to Indian start-ups in the space sector and have been providing hand holding for them to successfully assimilate the technology and to use it forcommercial basis. In addition to that NSIL also facilitates various Indian industries / Govt. PSU for utilization of ISRO technical facilities for validation of the technology / product being developed by them. (c) The Government has undertaken several proactive measures following the liberalization of the space sector, in order to promote participation of startups in satellite manufacturing, launch services, downstream applications and space-based technologies (i) Announced the Indian Space Policy 2023, where the roles and responsibilities of all the contributors of Indian Space Eco systems defined. (ii) Brought out the decadal vision and strategy for the Growth of the Indian Space sector and Economy (iii) Introduction of a liberalized Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy for the space sector. (iv) Implementation of a discounted pricing policy to enable Non- Government Entities (NGEs) to access ISRO facilities. (v) Establishment of a ₹1,000 crore Venture Capital (VC) Fund to support space start-ups. (vi) Launch of the ₹500 crore Technology Adoption Fund (TAF) to accelerate the development, demonstration, and commercialization of indigenous space technologies. (vii) Facilitation of access to ISRO infrastructure, technical expertise, and mentorship to support private sector growth. (viii) Launch of skill development initiatives to address the evolving workforce requirements of the space sector.(ix) Establishment of a Technical Centre to provide affordable testing, validation, and simulation facilities for space systems. (x) Enabling transfer of ISRO-developed technologies to industry for commercialization. (xi) Providing opportunities to validate space technologies through the PSLV Orbital Experimental Module (POEM) platform. (xii) Launch of the "Satellite Bus as a Service (SBaaS)" initiative to develop indigenous satellite platform capabilities and accelerate satellite development. (xiii) Encouraging state government to establish the manufacturing clusters as well as common testing facilities to boost manufacturing. (d) As on today there is no proposal or plan to establish or support additional space incubation centres, testing facilities or innovation hubs in Andhra Pradesh. (e) The Government has undertaken several measures following the liberalisation of the space sector. These measures encompass policy and regulatory reforms, infrastructure access, technology transfer, funding support, and capacity building through skill development to foster a vibrant private space ecosystem 1) Transfer of technology IN-SPACe is facilitating the transfer of available ISRO technologies to industry while also identifying and consolidating the technology requirements of industry for future technology development and transfer. Till date 118Technology Transfer Agreements have been executed through NSIL. To facilitate technology transfer, NSIL is promoting greater participation of private enterprises through transparent technology transfer processes and industry-friendly policies. It is promoting private sector participation through industry partnerships, capacity building, and opportunities across satellite manufacturing, integration, testing, and downstream services. Further, IN-SPACe is taking forward the planned transfer of Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3) technologies to enable greater private sector participation in launch vehicle manufacturing and operations 2) Investment in the space sector The Government has also introduced various investment support schemes for space startups, including the IN-SPACe Seed Fund Scheme, the Technology Adoption Fund (TAF), and the ₹1,000 crore Venture Capital Fund. As a result of these policy interventions and the growing participation of the private sector, cumulative investments in Indian space start- ups have reached approximately USD 618.5 million as on 31 March 2026, with the investment landscape progressively shifting from early-stage seed funding towards larger growth- stage investment rounds 3) International Collaboration and Global Market AccessIN-SPACe actively engages with foreign governments, space agencies, industry, and other stakeholders to promote and facilitate international collaborations for the Indian commercial space sector, including startups. The key initiatives undertaken by IN-SPACe include: (i) Strengthening bilateral and multilateral partnerships with leading space-faring nations. (ii) Facilitating the participation of Indian space industries in international exhibitions, business forums, delegation visits, B2B engagements, and industry roundtables to enhance global market access. (iii) Representing the Indian commercial space sector in Government-to-Government (G2G) dialogues and fostering partnerships with emerging space economies to promote exports, technology collaborations, and integration into global space supply chains. These initiatives have enabled collaboration opportunities for the Indian private space sector with stakeholders across more than 30 countries ****Annexure-I ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) OF LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4049 TO BE ANSWERED ON 12.08.2026 Sl. No. List of Start-Ups 1 Agnikul Cosmos Pvt Ltd, Chennai 2 Akshath Aerospace Private Limited, Bengaluru 3 Azista BST, Hyderabad 4 Bellatrix Aerospace Pvt Ltd, Bangalore 5 Cosmoserv Space India Private Limited, Bangalore 6 Dhruva Space Private Limited, Hyderabad 7 Digantara Research and Technologies Pvt. Ltd., Bangalore 8 GalaxEye Space Solutions Private Limited, Bangalore 9 HEX20Labs India Pvt ltd., Thiruvanathapuram 10 Inorbit Space Telecommunications Private Limited, New Delhi 11 Manastu Space Technologies Private Limited, Navi Mumbai 12 NSpace Tech India Private Limited, Tenali 13 OrbitAID Aerospace Private Limited, Chennai 14 PierSight Space Private Limited, Ahmedabad 15 PixxelSpace India Private Limited, Bengaluru 16 Skyroot Aerospace Ltd, Hyderabad 17 Space Kidz India, Chennai 18 TakeMe2Space Technologies Pvt. Ltd, K.V. Ranga ReddyAnnexure-II ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (b) OF LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4049 TO BE ANSWERED ON 12.08.2026 i. Details of financial support provided as on 31.07.2026 during the last three years (Rs in Lakhs) (a) Financial Year Cumulative Project/ Sl. Name of Scheme Scheme FY FY FY No. Envelope 2024-25 2025-26 2026-27 1 IN-SPACe Seed 6500 88.3 225 20 333.30 Fund Scheme/PIE 2 Venture Capital SEBI Approval: 31-10- 100000 605.64 18287.40 18893.04 Funds 2025 3 Technology 03 NGE selected for adoption Fund 50000 development of NIL NIL NIL Technology 4 Satellite Bus as a 03 NGE selected for 7500 NIL 750 750 Service (SBaas) development 5 Common Agreement signed Technical facilities 50000 with Govt. of Gujarat NIL NIL NIL and Tamilnadu Total 214000 88.30 830.64 19057.40 19976.34 ii). The details of Technical facilitation provided to start-ups by IN SPACe including launch slots and testing access, year-wise are as under Sr. Year Details of Start-ups Facilitation provided No. Agnikul Cosmos, Skyroot Flex seal & acoustic testing, S/X-band Aerospace, Pixxel antenna RF testing, sub-orbital launch 1 2022 access (Vikram-S), launch vehicle TM reception. Dhruva Space, PixxelSpace, Agniban SoRTeD launch access, RAMAN- Skyroot Aerospace, Agnikul I & II engine testing, Azaadisat-2 2 2023 Cosmos, Spacekidz, Azista BST environmental testing, static stage testing, ground station support. Skyroot Aerospace, Stage-1 casting & propellant supply, PixxelSpace, Manastu Space, hardware-in-loop simulations, POEM 3 2024 Piersight Space, N Space Tech payload EMI/EMC and shock testing. India Pvt. Ltd. Agnikul Cosmos, Dhruva Cryogenic pump PDR review, X/UHF-band Space, Piersight, Galaxeye, downlink support, TVAC/outgassing 4 2025 Satleo Labs, Skyroot Aerospace tests, trajectory validation, cooling umbilical supply. TakeMe2Space, Bellatrix First Launch Pad (FLP) utilization for Aerospace, Skyroot Aerospace, Vikram-1, docking mechanism lab testing, 5 2026 OrbitAid Aerospace, Dhruva SRS shock testing, silicide coating for Space Pvt. Ltd, micro-thrusters.iii) The details of the start-ups/individuals to whom support extended under various schemes of IN-SPACe are Sl. Name of Starts-up Domain Location No. 1 ARMS4AI Agriculture Delhi 2 mistEO Agriculture Kerala 3 Augtual (Fabric) Disaster Karnataka 4 Hyspace Urban Karnataka 5 Xovian Disaster Karnataka 6 Seagull Urban Gujarat 7 Suhora Marine Utter Pradesh 8 Cloudone AI Robotics Full Mission Kerala Virtualization 9 Dream Aero for Smart Tamilnadu Computing and 10 Aule Space Karnataka Control 11 ULEO Space Gujarat 12 N Space Tech India Pvt. Urban Telangana Ltd. 13 SAR SPACE Pvt. Ltd. Disaster and Gujarat Marine 14 H Square Engineers Pvt. Disaster Karnataka Ltd. 15 Thazhal Geospatial Urban Tamilnadu Analytics Pvt. Ltd 16 Kawa Space Marine Karnataka 17 ClimaCrew Marine Maharashtra 18 Sanyark Space Full Mission Telangana Virtualization 19 GalaxEye Space for Smart Karnataka Computing and 20 TakeMeToSpace Telangana Control 21 Digantara Karnataka 22 Space Unlock Gujarat 23 Orbital-grid Telanganaiv. Details of the start-ups/individuals to whom support Preincubation Entrepreneurship Program (PIE) Grantee Location Manish Naagar Uttarakhand Ameya Marakarkandy Maharashtra Kannan Pandi Tamil Nadu Rosni Agi Information Pvt Ltd Haryana Matterak Technologies Karnataka Venkatesh S Tamil Nadu Prathamesh Ramade Maharashtra Ujjawal Singh Uttar pradesh Dreamaerospace Technologies Pvt. Karnataka Autosky Aerospace Pvt Ltd Tamil nadu *****