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New Delhi, Sept 6: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has strongly rejected reports suggesting that the space agency could be privatised or that its role in India’s space programme may be reduced, describing such claims as “completely baseless and incorrect.”



The clarification came after reports that nine associations representing ISRO employees had sought clarity from the government over the future role of the organisation amid the Centre’s push for greater private-sector participation in the space industry.



In a statement issued on Sunday, ISRO categorically said that it would neither be privatised nor have its importance diminished.



The space agency said it would continue to serve as India’s principal institution for advanced space research and technology development, national and strategic missions, space science and exploration, and critical and frontier space capabilities.



Private sector participation will not diminish ISRO’s role



ISRO said the growing participation of private companies is part of a broader effort to expand India’s space ecosystem rather than replace the organisation’s core functions.



The agency explained that private industry would be encouraged to take up the manufacturing and scaling of mature and commercially viable technologies, while ISRO focuses on advanced research and capabilities that cannot simply be substituted by commercial activity.



“Private participation in operations and services will be enabled where appropriate,” ISRO said, adding that such activities would remain subject to national security, safety and regulatory requirements.



Strategic and nationally critical capabilities, it stressed, would continue to be governed by considerations of security, safety, quality and national interest.



According to ISRO, the objective of the reforms is to allow industry to expand established capabilities while enabling the space agency to concentrate on the next technological frontier.



“What is changing is not the importance of ISRO, but the scale and structure of India’s space ecosystem,” the organisation said.



Employee associations had raised concerns



The clarification followed a letter dated September 4 addressed to ISRO Chairman and Department of Space Secretary V. Narayanan by nine employee associations.



The associations sought clarity on the government’s policy regarding private participation, ISRO’s future responsibilities and the possible impact of the proposed changes on existing employees and future recruitment.



The organisations reportedly expressed concern over reports that manufacturing and operational activities could increasingly be handed over to private entities.



The signatories included the ISRO Staff Association, SHAR Employees Association, ISAC Employees Association, ISRO Staff Association-LPSC, ISRO Staff Association-BBU, NRSA Employees Union, Space Employees Association-BBU, ISRO Staff Association-IPRC and SAC Employees Welfare Association.



IN-SPACE chief says reforms are aimed at expanding the ecosystem



Pawan Goenka, chairperson of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe)**, also sought to allay concerns over ISRO’s future role.



In a post on X, Goenka said the reforms introduced since 2020 were intended to expand India’s overall space ecosystem by enabling industry to manufacture and scale mature launch vehicles, satellites and other space systems.



IN-SPACe is an autonomous body under the Department of Space responsible for promoting, enabling, authorising and overseeing space activities by non-government entities.



Goenka’s comments came after his recent remarks that, eventually, launch vehicles would no longer be manufactured by ISRO and that the responsibility would be taken up by private companies or public sector undertakings.



Those remarks had fuelled speculation about whether ISRO was gradually moving away from manufacturing and operational responsibilities.



The latest statements from ISRO and IN-SPACe, however, indicate that the government’s approach is to divide responsibilities rather than diminish the space agency—with private industry expected to scale established technologies while ISRO retains the lead in strategic missions, advanced research, space science and the development of next-generation capabilities.

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