Govt pegs space economy at $44 bn by 2034

New Delhi: From the current $8 billion, India’s space economy is expected to surge to $44 billion in the forthcoming 10 years, Dr Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology said here on Friday.

Speaking at the celebration of the first-ever National Space Day at Bharat Mandapam, Singh said that India has made significant progress in the space sector in the past decade, which includes the successful Mars Orbiter Mission, the launch of AstroSat, Chandrayaan-2, andChandrayaan-3, the upcoming Aditya-L1 solar mission, and the XPoSat, an X-Ray astronomy mission.

With these successful missions, India’s space economy currently stands at $8 billion and contributes to around 2-3 per cent of the global space economy.

However, “India’s space economy will grow from $8 billion to $44 billion in the next decade,” the MoS said.

He traced India’s Space journey, which began just 55 years back in 1969 when the US astronaut Neil Armstrong had already set foot on the Moon.

Yet “in the last six decades, India has not only touched the lives of its citizens, but also reached the Moon,” Singh said, while lauding the scientific community for their unwavering dedication, to making India the first nation to land on the Moon's South Pole.

He attributed this success also to the government’s policy support and leadership which unshackled the space sector, accelerating scientific missions and unlocking the potential of India’s scientific community.