Space 2.0: Shaping India's Leap into the Final Frontier

As a long-term investor in space technology and infrastructure, India aspires to be one among the top nations in the world in terms of government space investment. Though space investment has been growing over the past few decades, India's space competitiveness has suffered from the absence of a globally reputed, private space industry. The present work provides key insights into India's stance in the global market and its emergence as a space power, and puts in context the emergence of NewSpace globally. The key reasons for the Indian space industry's failure to take advantage of the global opportunities of market expansion are discussed in this paper. Various critical issues affecting the development of the space sector—with special reference to the need for a support structure of ancillary small- and medium-scale industry—are examined. Aspects of planning of coordinated long-term road maps for national and global expansion are also put forth for consideration. Specific recommendations for kickstarting Space 2.0 in India are provided for the consideration of policy-makers to support development of public-private partnerships, enable a space cluster development and enhance support to the government's policy push for doing business in India ('Make in India') and for digitally connecting its citizens ('Digital India').