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SIA-India Newsletter – October 2025 First Edition

[L-R- Mr DS Govindrajan, Board Member, SIA-India; Mr Anil Prakash, DG, SIA-India; Dr N Manjula, I.A.S, Secretary to Government,Department of Electronics, Information Technology, Biotechnology, and Science & Technology, Government of Karnataka, Dr Subba Rao Pavuluri, President, SIA-India, Shree Priyank M Kharge, Minister of Electronics, Information Technology & Biotechnology and Rural Development & Panchayat Raj, Government of Karnataka, AVM Dhananjay Khot (Retd), Director, Planning and Strategy, IN-SPACe, Dr Vinod Kumar, Director, Promotion, IN-SPACe, Mr. Rahul S Sankanur, I.A.S, Managing Director, KITS]

In a landmark move to bolster India’s NewSpace ecosystem, the Government of Karnataka, through the Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS), has signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the Satcom Industry Association – India (SIA-India) to establish the country’s first state-level Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Space Technology.

The CoE will serve as a transformative hub to incubate and accelerate space-tech startups, providing prototype funding to help convert concepts into market-ready products. On the talent front, it will upskill professionals through short-term, industry-aligned programs and certify students through advanced, long-duration courses. In research and development, the CoE aims to publish peer-reviewed research in international journals and commercialise innovative products and solutions spanning satellite components, data analytics, and AI-based tools. The Centre will also drive several strategic partnerships with domestic and international organizations to facilitate technology transfer, joint ventures, and collaborative missions.

The CoE will reinforce Karnataka’s aspiration to capture 50% of India’s space market share (~$22 billion by 2033) and contribute significantly towards the national goal of securing 10% of the global space economy within the next decade. Conceived as a multi-functional platform integrating industry, academia, startups, and government, the CoE will accelerate India’s space innovation ecosystem through targeted interventions in capacity building, research and development, and startup acceleration over a five-year roadmap (2025–2030).

SIA-India officially became a member of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF), with the announcement made at IAC 2025 in Sydney. This milestone marks India’s growing influence in global space dialogues and strengthens SIA-India’s role in representing the country’s private space industry on the international platform.

 

At IAC 2025, SIA-India inked a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Institute of Space Law (IISL)to enhance cooperation in the areas of space law and policy. The MoU was signed by Dr. Kai-Uwe Schrogl, President of IISL, and Ms. Ranjana Kaul, Vice President of IISL, in the presence of SIA-India representatives. This collaboration aims to foster dialogue on regulatory frameworks for responsible space activities.   

The 5th India–Australia Space Dialogue, co-chaired by Dr. Pawan Goenka, Chairman, IN-SPACe, and Mr. Enrico Palermo, Head, Australian Space Agency, was held alongside the Australia–India Space Roundtable at IAC 2025, Sydney.

The discussions underscored the import–export challenges faced by both nations’ space industries and the need to enhance bilateral trade facilitation. As a key outcome, SIA-India and the Space Industry Association of Australia (SIAA) have been tasked with preparing a joint report on identifying the challenges and enhancing ease of doing business between the two countries’ space sectors. The initiative aims to streamline regulatory processes and strengthen industrial collaboration in emerging space technologies.

SIA-India extended strong support to 25 Indian space companies exhibiting at IAC 2025, assisting them in business engagements, partnerships, and global collaborations. The initiative highlighted India’s growing commercial capabilities and the collective strength of its NewSpace ecosystem on a global stage.

SIA-India member Agnikul Cosmos unveiled its groundbreaking reusable launch vehicle strategy at the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) 2025 in Sydney, marking a major step towards sustainable space operations.

Backed by newly granted patents in the US, Europe, and India, Agnikul’s innovation underscores its commitment to developing original space technology solutions in India for global markets. The company’s approach aligns perfectly with the IAC 2025 theme, “Sustainable Space: Resilient Earth”, ensuring that no part of its rockets is fully expended or left behind.

Adding a cultural touch to India’s participation, delegates celebrated Dussehra at the ISRO Booth in Sydney. The celebration brought together representatives from ISRO, IN-SPACe, and SIA-India and industry, symbolizing unity, tradition, and the spirit of India’s growing space community.

IN-SPACe’s constitution of an Inter-Ministerial Joint Working Group to study SATCOM demand generation and assess satellite demand-supply is a decisive, much-needed shot in the arm for India’s satellite ambitions. In response, SIA-India has submitted the industry inputs that lay out a clear roadmap for urgent expansion of satellite capacity and coordinated demand generation. The submission highlights an estimated domestic INSAT/GSAT fleet of about 200–220 transponders plus roughly 110 foreign-leased C/Ku equivalents, and warns of multi-terabit demand across broadcasting, consumer broadband, enterprise and mobility services over the coming decade.

SIA-India recommends a Gram-Panchayat-centric phased rollout to connect 40,000 critical GPs in 2025–27 using Ka-band HTS/NGSO (initial ~200 Gbps aggregate), scaling to ~800 Gbps by 2027–30 and targeting multi-terabit, multi-orbit coverage by 2030–35. It urges policy actions — classify SATCOM as core infrastructure, extend parity in universal service funding, enable single-window licensing for gateways and teleports, harmonise spectrum, and publish an annual National Satcom Capacity Ledger. The working group is India’s moment to turn a capacity crunch into a capacity advantage.

SIA-India is preparing its Pre-Budget Memorandum for the 2026 Union Budget and invites members to contribute inputs to shape the industry’s policy and funding priorities. Please send your key challenges and recommendations to sudipta.behera@sia-india.com by 25 October 2024. The association will finalise and submit the memorandum at the end of October 2024.

SIA-India Consolidates Response to EU Space Act In a proactive move to secure greater opportunities for Indian space companies in Europe, SIA-India, in collaboration with Grayspace — a Hungarian law firm — is consolidating an industry response to the proposed EU Space Act. This initiative aims to strengthen trade and regulatory alignment between India and EU member states, ensuring that Indian space enterprises are well-positioned to engage with emerging European frameworks on space safety, sustainability, and market access. SIA-India has consolidated initial feedback and invites members to share their suggestions by 30th October 2025. Inputs may be sent to sudipta.behera@sia-india.com

In a major step towards next-generation space-enabled semiconductor innovation, Axiom Space has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Japan’s Resonac Corporation to pioneer semiconductor research and manufacturing in the microgravity environment. The partnership will initially focus on the development and testing of specialized molding compounds engineered to reduce soft errors—bit flips in semiconductor devices caused by cosmic rays and radiation. These materials will be evaluated aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and future Axiom orbital platforms, advancing the reliability of electronics for both space and terrestrial applications.

Leveraging the unique advantages of microgravity, the collaboration aims to create defect-free crystals, advanced resins, and novel 2D materials—components that are difficult or impossible to produce under Earth’s gravitational conditions. Such breakthroughs are crucial for Indian human spaceflight programmes - Gaganyaan mission, where radiation-resistant and high-reliability semiconductor technologies will play a pivotal role in enhancing spacecraft safety and mission longevity.

SIA-India has prepared a report on microgravity research and its commercial potential, exploring how Indian industry and academia can leverage microgravity environments for advanced materials, pharmaceuticals, and semiconductor development.

The NASA–ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission has successfully transmitted its first radar images of Earth, marking a major milestone in radar imaging technology and international collaboration in Earth observation. Jointly developed by NASA and ISRO, NISAR is equipped with dual-frequency radar systems — NASA’s L-band and ISRO’s S-band — which enable it to capture high-resolution, all-weather, day-and-night images of Earth’s surface. The mission’s unique capability lies in its ability to penetrate dense vegetation, clouds, and even surface layers, making it possible to monitor subtle changes in land, ice, and vegetation over time. The first set of images, capturing Mount Desert Island in Maine and the farmlands of North Dakota, reveal the mission’s unprecedented capacity to distinguish between different surface types such as forests, water bodies, urban structures, and agricultural fields. With a systematic 12-day global mapping cycle, NISAR will provide continuous and precise data critical for understanding ecosystem dynamics, tectonic movements, glacial retreat, and urban expansion. The integration of advanced radar technology and precision orbiting further enhances its temporal and spatial resolution, offering scientists an unparalleled dataset for climate modeling and disaster management.

SIA-India, in collaboration with the Embassy of Finland (TFK India), will host the Finland–India Webinar on the Future of Space Technology & Science on 17 October 2025. The session will explore opportunities in deep tech, AI, quantum technologies, health/pharma, space food security, and material supply chains, bringing together policymakers, industry leaders, and academic experts from both nations. The webinar aims to foster joint R&D, innovation partnerships, and technology commercialization for sustainable space development.
Time: 1600–1730 IST | 1330–1500 EET
Format: Online Webinar

With SIA-India as an industry partner, the AWS Space Accelerator: APJ 2025 has selected 67 startups for its 10-week program, aimed at fostering innovations in space sustainability, Earth observation, defense, and related domains. Participants will receive AWS credits, mentorship, and venture capital connections to accelerate scalable space solutions across Australia, India, and Japan.

Mr. Anil Prakash, Director General of SIA-India, shared his insights during the panel discussion on “Policy & Ecosystem Enablement” held on 8 October 2025 at the India Mobile Congress, New Delhi. The session, chaired and moderated by Dr. P K Jain, Director PMA, IN-SPACe, focused on policy frameworks and ecosystem readiness shaping India’s satellite communication and space technology landscape, providing an interactive platform for industry and government stakeholders to exchange ideas.

The Italy–India Aerospace Roadshow 2025, organised by ITA – Italian Trade Agency, Agenzia Spaziale Italiana (ASI), IN-SPACe, and SIA-India, concluded its week-long journey across India with a grand finale in New Delhi on 26 September 2025. Hosted at the Italian Embassy, the event featured focused sessions on aerospace cluster best practices, Earth observation applications, and India’s procurement and regulatory landscape. The roadshow, with prior stops in Hyderabad and Bengaluru, strengthened India–Italy collaboration in the space and aerospace sectors, fostering innovation, business opportunities, and global partnerships.

SIA-India congratulates Prof. Dr. Zaffar Sadiq Mohamed-Ghouse on his election as the Chair of the UN-GGIM Geospatial Societies (UN-GGIM: GS) during the 15th Session of the United Nations Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management (UN-GGIM) held in New York, August 2025.

OrbitAID, an SIA-India member, has secured the Indo-Australian MAITRI grant to develop and deploy India’s first in-orbit docking and refuelling interface — the Standard Interface for Docking and Refuelling Port (SIDRP) — aboard an Australian joint mission in 2026.

The project aims to extend spacecraft lifespans by standardizing refuelling mechanisms in orbit, thereby contributing to space sustainability. OrbitAID will also oversee the entire propellant supply chain, integrating Earth-based fuelling operations with on-orbit servicing.

This milestone marks the first commercial deployment of an Indian-developed docking and refuelling technology in space. OrbitAID’s Bengaluru facility, equipped for proximity operations and docking tests, will play a critical role in this mission. The startup is also working toward launching a constellation of tanker satellites to act as orbital fuel stations by 2027.

Mr Anil Prakash
Director General, SIA-India

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is pushing for a tighter regulatory framework for spectrum sharing in satellite communications (satcom) to manage potential interference as new players enter.

Bengaluru: Karnataka has taken the lead in India's space innovation drive with the signing of a memorandum of agreement (MoA) between Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS) and (SIA-India) to set up the country's first state-level Centre of Excellence (CoE) in space technology.

Startup dreams meet the stock exchange! Ideabaaz debuts at NSE, bringing mentorship, investment & a nationwide platform to empower entrepreneurs across India

India’s first dedicated Space Astronomy Observatory, AstroSat completed a decade of operations on Sunday (September 28, 2025).