The reforms that have been brought in by the government will pave the way for an active role by private players

With the Union Cabinet approving the creation of IN-SPACe, or the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre, private players will soon be able to participate in space activities such as rocket-building, satellite building, owning spacecraft, and providing services.

According to ISRO Chairman K Sivan, existing government policies for the space sector would be modified to provide fair and equitable space for private enterprises.

In an interview to DNA Sivan said that ISRO will have to spend more time and energy on advanced technology development, advanced missions and national missions, in addition to existing duties.

On a possible Military-Industry-Academia linkage in the future, the ISRO Chairman pointed out that the industries would get more and more involvement in activities being carried out in the space sector. The reforms that have been brought in by the government will pave the way for such a role by private players, he said.

On apprehensions that have been raised about the sensitive, dual-use nature of rocket and specifically launch vehicle technology, Sivan pointed out that IN-SPACe would have multiple directorates to deal with these concerns.

There were plans for 5 directorates in total such as technical, safety & security, legal, monitoring, and promotion, DNA quoted the ISRO Chairman as saying.