New Delhi, Feb 8 : Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Dr Jitendra Singh Wednesday informed the Lok Sabha that 135 applications have been received by IN-SPACe from StartUps and 135 Non-Governmental Entities (NGEs) in the Space Sector.
Regarding StartUps in Space, Dr Jitendra Singh informed that a new Seed fund scheme has been approved by IN-SPACe Board to provide initial financial assistance to Indian Space Start-ups.
Dr Singh said a revised FDI policy in the Space sector to facilitate overseas investment in NGEs and a National Space Policy is in the process of final approval of the Government.
He said during the last financial year, an amount of Rs. 697 crore was generated towards export of launch services, data sales and in-orbit support services and post-launch operations.
The minister further stated that during the financial year 2021-22, items worth Rs. 2,114 crore (approx.) were imported for executing various projects/ programmes.
Dr Singh said, foreign satellites launching has yielded substantial earnings after 2014, ever since Narendra Modi took over as Prime Minister. “Out of 385 foreign satellites launched so far, as many as 353 have been launched only after 2014 when Narendra Modi took over as Prime Minister”.
This, he said, has been possible because of the fast- track on which the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was enabled to move with special priority and promotion by Prime Minister Modi.
The Minister said that out of 385 satellites launched so far from 34 different countries, as many as 353 were launched after Narendra Modi took over as Prime Minister, in the last 8 years.
Earlier in reply to a question in the Lok Sabha Dr Jitendra Singh furnished details of the pathbreaking headway made after Prime Minister Modi’s revolutionary decisions three years back to open the space sector for private participants.
