PM Modi inaugurates Skyroot’s facility in Hyderabad, recalls govt’s ‘historic’ space reforms

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday virtually inaugurated Indian space startup Skyroot’s Infinity Campus, here, and highlighted the government’s ‘historic’ space reforms.

He also unveiled the company’s first orbital rocket, Vikram-I which has capability to launch satellites to orbit.

In his address, Modi pointed out the government’s ‘historic’ space reforms and said opening up the space sector to private players has resulted in Skyroot and others coming up with such innovations.

The PM said that today in India’s space ecosystem, the private sector was emerging with flying colours. Over 300 space startups were giving new hopes to the sector.

“The Infinity Campus is a reflection of India’s new thought, innovation and the the bigger youth power. Youth’s innovation, risk taking ability and entrepreneurship are touching new heights,” the PM noted.

Today, the country’s space sector was becoming attractive for global investors. India’s private space talent was making its own identity across the globe.

He traced the journey of the Indian space programme from its nascent stages — where rocket parts were moved in a bicycle, to building the “most trusted launch vehicle.”

The journey might have started with limited resources but the growth proved determination decides dreams, Modi said.

In these changing times, space sector is expanding so much, covering the areas of communication, weather prediction, urban planning and national security, among others.

“So that is why we have made historic reforms in space sector, opened it up to the private sector, made new space policy. Startups and industry were linked with innovation, set up In-Space,” he said.

He further said there were plans to open up the nuclear sector to private players as well.

Skyroot’s state-of-the-art facility would have around two lakh sq.ft. workspace for designing, developing, integrating and testing multiple launch vehicles, with a capacity to build one orbital rocket every month.

Skyroot is India’s leading private space company, founded by Pawan Chandana and Bharath Dhaka, both IIT alumni and former scientists of ISRO.

In November 2022, Skyroot launched its sub-orbital rocket, Vikram-S, becoming the first Indian private company to do so.

The rapid rise of private space enterprises is a testament to the success of the transformative reforms carried out by the NDA Government in the last few years, reinforcing India’s leadership as a confident and capable global space power, an official release had earlier said.

In his address, Modi recalled that India’s space journey started with limited resources, but its ambitions were never limited.

For decades, ISRO has given new wings to India’s space journey, he said, and stressed that credibility, capacity, and value have established India’s distinct identity in the sector.

The space agency’s facilities and technologies were made available to the startups, he said, pointing out that India’s space sector has been transformed into an open, cooperative and innovation-driven eco-system in the last six-seven years.

He said India’s youth keeps national interest paramount and properly utilises every opportunity. When the government opened the space sector, the country’s youth and especially the Gen Z came forward to make full utilisation of it, he said.

“Today, over 300 Indian space startups are giving new hopes to India’s space future. Even in this, most of the space startups started with small teams and I had the opportunity to meet them. Teams were small, there were limited resources, but the intentions were to reach great heights,” he said, adding this spirit gave birth to the private space revolution in India.

The Prime Minister said today, Gen Z engineers, Gen Z designers, Gen Z coders and Gen Z scientists are making new technologies.

Be it the propulsion system, composite materials, rocket stages, or satellite platforms, India’s youth are working in areas that were unimaginable a few years ago, he said.