ISRO Chairman V Narayanan has said that India will expand its space operations significantly with four functional launch pads by 2029.
“To handle this expanding ecosystem, ISRO will handhold startups and private enterprises, transferring technological expertise to foster economic growth and generate thousands of high-tech jobs,” he said while speaking at a graduation ceremony at a private university here on Saturday. “India will expand its space operations significantly with four functional launch pads by 2029, supported by an increasing reliance on private industry partnerships to handle commercial operations,” Narayanan said.
Clarifying that the national space agency will not be privatised, Narayanan emphasised that partnering with private firms was essential to meet surging global and domestic demands for thousands of satellites. Looking further ahead, Narayanan revealed plans for Chandrayaan -5, a collaborative lunar mission with Japan’s space agency featuring a 350-kg rover designed to conduct 100 days of surface experiments.
Stating that ISRO plans to conduct the first uncrewed Gaganyaan test within the next two months, followed by two subsequent uncrewed tests before the crewed mission, he said, “These tests will evaluate environmental control, safety systems, crew escape mechanisms, and module interiors under varying pressure, temperature, and humidity conditions.
