India has 2% share in global space economy: Govt informs Lok Sabha

India's share in the estimated USD 360-billion global space economy is approximately two per cent, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday.

Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Jitendra Singh said India has acquired indigenous capabilities in the space sector across all domains, including space transportation systems, and space assets comprising a fleet of satellites catering to the needs of earth observation, satellite communication, meteorology, space science and navigation.

India also has ground infrastructure, and a host of operational programmes related to the applications of space technology to address national imperatives and the common problems of man and society, he said.

"The exact sizing of the Global Space Economy is a complex exercise and matter of much debate. A 2019 estimate pegs the global space economy at USD 360 billion with India's share at approximately 2 per cent," the minister said.

In reply to a separate question, Singh said six startups were selected and supported by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) with a grant-in-aid of a maximum of Rs 50 lakh each in areas like geospatial information, propulsion and robotics, and augmented reality and virtual reality.

He said ISRO along with Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), and NITI Aayog launched the ANIC-ARISE-1.0 programme to seek, select, support and nurture technology-based innovations that solve sectoral challenges of national importance.

The minister said 24 start-ups submitted their proposals, out of which six were selected and supported with a grant-in-aid of a maximum of Rs 50 lakh each.

ANIC-ARISE-1.0 has three space sector challenges to get project proposals from start-ups. These are geospatial information propulsion and Robotics/Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality, he said.

Singh said ANIC-ARISE-2.0 has been launched with four space sector challenges GIS solutions, propulsion, navigation and artificial intelligence/machine learning modelling for space applications, seeking project proposals from start-ups in these areas.

Selected start-ups will be supported with a grant-in-aid of a maximum of Rs 50 lakh each, Singh added.