US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti visited the ISRO headquarters in Bengaluru on Friday and held discussions with ISRO Chairman Somanath.
| Photo Credit: special arrangement

Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman S. Somanath, on Friday (May 24), called upon the industry to invest more in the space sector.

Delivering the keynote address at the US-India Space Cooperation Conference said, “Our big industry houses need to put in more effort in the space sector. They are doing a great job in infrastructure building, industrial ecosystems, and the defence sector. But in space, there has not been a great stride by any big industry till now.”

Mr. Somanath cited the example of ISRO’s commercial arm, NewSpace India Ltd, inviting Indian industry partners to manufacture the space agency’s heaviest launcher, Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (LVM3).

“This is precisely the approach to build such an investment-heavy rocket as the production cost is also very, very high for such rockets. But then if you create the capability in India through industrial, public partnership, we should be able to produce large numbers, break down the cost of the production and then make it available to the global launch service community,” Mr Somanath said.

Mr. Somanath also stressed the need for international space cooperation as India is embarking on multiple missions, including sending an Indian astronaut to the International Space Station, setting up India’s own space station by 2035, and landing on the moon.

“As all of you know, to achieve such very, very critical targets, I think we need partners and the participation of many, many people who are legendary leaders in this space domain,” Mr. Somanath said.

US envoy visits ISRO HQ

The US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti, visited the ISRO headquarters on Friday (May 24) and discussed various issues pertaining to space cooperation between the two countries with Mr. Somanath.

“The discussions highlighted both countries’ mutual interests and shared goals in advancing space science, technology, and the space economy. Ongoing associations through various Joint Working Groups, Artemis Accord, NISAR, and the use of the Laser Reflectometer Array on Chandrayaan-3 were also discussed,” ISRO said.

ISRO added that other significant discussions included NASA’s participation in India’s proposal for a G-20 satellite for environment and climate change, an advanced imaging spectrometer satellite as a follow-up mission for NISAR, encouragement of cooperation between commercial companies from both countries for quicker and more effective outcomes, and use of Gaganyaan cargo module as an option for transfer of cargo to the International Space Station. The US Ambassador also proposed a QUAD satellite, ISRO said.