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Expanding India’s share in global space economy
ISRO should embrace a civilian identity and, aided by legislation, form partnerships with the industry and entrepreneurs
aster management and search and mission, Gaganyaan, planned for in cities like Bengaluru which is
Blue-sky visions rescue services.
A second area of focus was
its fi rst test fl ight in 2021. These
missions are not just for technolo
where most New Space startups
have mushroomed.
The ambitions of the Economic Survey earth observation and using gy demonstration but also for ex Equally, clear rules and regula
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depend on the implementation of its ideas spacebased imagery for a slew of panding the frontiers of know tions are essential. ISRO can learn
national demands, ranging from ledge in space sciences. from its 1997 SatCom policy which
The Economic Survey for 201819 refl ects the views of
Rakesh Sood weather forecasting, disaster man None of this would have been neither attracted any FDI in the
its principal author, Chief Economic Adviser (CEA) agement and national resource possible without mastering the sector nor a single licensee. A simi
Krishnamurthy Subramanian. And the CEA has made mapping and planning. launchvehicle technology. Begin lar situation exists with the Re
F
bold to use the new government’s fi rst economic assess rom a modest beginning in These resources cover agricul ning with the Satellite Launch Veh mote Sensing Data Policy of 2001,
mentcumagenda setting exercise to posit a range of the 1960s, India’s space pro ture and watershed, land re icle (SLV) and the Augmented Sa amended in 2011, which too has
ideas that he attributes to “blue sky thinking”. From an gramme has grown steadily, source, and forestry manage tellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV), failed to attract a single applica
embrace of a “world that is in constant disequilibrium”, achieving signifi cant milestones. ments. With higher resolution and ISRO has developed and refi ned lion (just 2% of the global market) tion. The 2017 draft Bill raised
These include fabrication of satel precise positioning, Geographical the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle covering broadband and Directto more questions because it sought
and the need therefore to adapt to it, to the stress on
lites, spacelaunch vehicles, and a Information Systems’ applications (PSLV) as its workhorse for placing Home television (accounting for to retain the dominant role of IS
drawing upon Richard Thaler’s work in the behavioural range of associated capabilities. today cover all aspects of rural and satellites in low earth and sun syn twothirds of the share), satellite RO/Antrix as operator, licensor,
economics of ‘nudge’ for addressing issues including Today, the Indian Space Re urban development and planning. chronous orbits. With 46 success imagery and navigation. Already, rulemaker and service provider.
gender equality, savings and tax compliance, the sur search Organisation (ISRO)’s an Beginning with the Indian Remote ful missions, the PSLV has an en over a third of transponders used Another revolution under way
vey attempts to reset multiple paradigms. The broad nual budget has crossed ₹ 10,000 Sensing (IRS) series in the 1980s, viable record. The for Indian services are leased from is the small satellite revolution.
goal is to help drive economic strategy to achieve sus crore ($1.45 billion), growing stea today the RISAT, Cartosat and Re Geosynchronous Satellite Launch foreign satellites and this propor Globally, 17,000 small satellites are
tained real GDP growth of 8% so as to enable fulfi lment dily from ₹ 6,000 crore fi ve years sourcesat series provide widefi eld Vehicle (GSLV) programme is still tion will rise as the demand grows. expected to be launched between
of the government’s grand vision of making India a $5 ago. However, demand for space and multispectral high resolution developing with its MkIII variant, Developments in Artifi cial Intel now and 2030. ISRO is developing
based services in India is far grea data for land, ocean and atmos having undertaken three missions, ligence (AI) and big data analytics a small satellite launch vehicle
trillion economy by 2025. For that, the fi rst task is to
ter than what ISRO can supply. pheric observations. and is capable of carrying a 3.5 MT has led to the emergence of ‘New (SSLV) expected to be ready in
take stock of the economy’s current state. The CEA is Private sector investment is criti A third and more recent focus payload into a geostationary orbit. Space’ — a disruptive dynamic 2019. It is a prime candidate, along
cautiously confi dent that the slump in investment, cal, for which a suitable policy en area is satelliteaided navigation. Compare this to the French Ariane based on using endtoend effi with the proven PSLV, to be
which he rightly identifi es as the key driver of growth, vironment needs to be created. The GPSaided GEO augmented 5, which has undertaken more ciency concepts. A parallel is how farmed out to the private sector.
jobs and demand, has bottomed out. Setting the huge There is growing realisation that navigation (GAGAN), a joint pro than 100 launch missions and car the independent app developers, This requires giving it responsibili
electoral mandate for the government as an enabler national legislation is needed to ject between ISRO and Airports ries a 5 MT payload, with an Ar given access to the Android and ty for AIT activities.
that would “push the animal spirits of the economy”, ensure overall growth of the space Authority of India, augmented the iane 6 in the pipeline for 2020. Apple platforms, revolutionised Years ago, ISRO launched the
sector. The draft Space Activities GPS coverage of the region, im Over the years, ISRO built a smartphone usage. New Space en idea of Village Resource Centres to
the survey projects real GDP growth to rebound to 7%
Bill introduced in 2017 has lapsed proving the accuracy and integri strong association with the indus trepreneurship has emerged in In work in collaboration with local
in 201920. But the CEA doesn’t shy away from fl agging and the government now has an ty, primarily for civil aviation ap try, particularly with Public Sector dia with about two dozen startups panchayats and NGOs but only
‘consumption’ as being crucial in determining the opportunity to give priority to a plications and better air traffi c Undertakings (PSUs) like Hindus who are not enamoured of the tra 460 pilots have begun. Expanding
growth trajectory in the current fi scal year, and in new Bill that can be welcomed by management over Indian airspace. tan Aeronautics Limited, Mishra ditional vendor/supplier model this for rural areas is a formidable
pointing out its vulnerability to the health of the mon the private sector, both the larger This was followed up with the In Dhatu Nigam Limited and Bharat but see value in exploring endto challenge but has the potential to
soondependent rural economy. With rainfall as on July players and the startups alike. dian Regional Navigation Satellite Electronics Limited and large priv end services in the BusinesstoBu transform rural India if properly
3 about 28% less than average and large parts of south System (IRNSS), a system based on ate sector entities like Larsen and siness and BusinesstoConsumer conceived as a part of the India
ISRO’s thrust areas seven satellites in geostationary Toubro, Godrej and Walchandna segments. However, these start Stack and the Jan Dhan Yojana.
ern and western India in the grip of a crippling drought,
Since its establishment in 1969, IS and geosynchronous orbits. gar Industries. However, most of ups have yet to take off in the ab With the Ministry of Defence
clearly the circumspection appears well warranted. RO has been guided by a set of mis It provides accurate positioning the private sector players are sence of regulatory clarity. now setting up a Defence Space
On the fi scal front, the survey is even less optimistic. sion and vision statements cover service, covering a region extend Tier2/Tier3 vendors, providing Agency and a Defence Space Re
It lists several challenges to achieving the fi scal defi cit ing both the societal objectives ing to 1,500 km beyond Indian components and services. The As ‘New Space’ start-ups search Organisation, ISRO should
target of 3% of GDP by March 2021: the “apprehensions and the thrust areas. The fi rst area borders, with an accuracy greater sembly, Integration and Testing The New Space startups discern a actively embrace an exclusively ci
of slowing of growth” and the implications for revenue was of satellite communication, than 20 metres; higher accuracy (AIT) role is restricted to ISRO, synergy with government’s fl ag vilian identity. A new Space law for
collections; the shortfall in GST collections and the im with INSAT and GSAT as the back positioning is available to the se which set up Antrix, a private li ship programmes like Digital In India should aim at facilitating
bones, to address the national curity agencies for their use. In mited company, in 1992 as its com dia, StartUp India, Skill India and growing India’s share of global
perative that it places on revenue buoyancy this year;
needs for telecommunication, 2016, the system was renamed mercial arm to market its products schemes like Smart Cities Mission. space economy to 10% within a de
the hunt for resources to fund the expanded PMKISAN broadcasting and broadband in NavIC (Navigation with Indian and services and interface with They see a role as a dataapp buil cade which requires a new kind of
scheme, Ayushmaan Bharat and other government in frastructure. Constellation). the private sector in transfer of der between the data seller (ISRO/ partnership between ISRO, the es
itiatives; and the impact on oil purchase prices due to Gradually, bigger satellites have With growing confi dence, ISRO technology partnerships. Antrix) and the end user, taking tablished private sector and the
the U.S. sanctions on import of crude from Iran. It is, been built carrying a larger array has also started to undertake more Today, the value of the global advantage of the talent pool, inno New Space entrepreneurs.
however, on the policy prescriptions front that the CEA of transponders. About 200 tran ambitious space science and ex space industry is estimated to be vation competence and technolo
comes into his own. Central to the recommendations is sponders on Indian satellites pro ploration missions. The most nota $350 billion and is likely to exceed gy knowhow. They need an ena Rakesh Sood is a former diplomat and
vide services linked to areas like ble of these have been the Chan $550 billion by 2025. Despite IS bling ecosystem, a culture of currently a Distinguished Fellow at the
the focus on triggering a selfsustaining “virtuous cy
telecommunication, telemedicine, drayaan and the Mangalyaan RO’s impressive capabilities, In accelerators, incubators, Venture Observer Research Foundation. Email:
cle” of savings, investment and exports. To achieve television, broadband, radio, dis missions, with a manned space dia’s share is estimated at $7 bil Capitalists and mentors that exists rakeshsood2001@yahoo.com)
which, he suggests, presenting data as a ‘public good’,
ensuring policy consistency and reducing the cost of
Talking sanctions, endangering peace
capital. Micro, small and medium enterprises must be
nourished, especially fi rms that are most likely to boost
both job creation and productivity, and labour laws
made fl exible. Ultimately, it is the implementation that
may well decide how “blue sky” these ideas are. The Trump administration’s successive punitive actions against Iran can only be interpreted as a desire for direct confl ict
The U.S. built Iran’s fi rst nuclear leading to the JCPOA. India’s investments in Iran’s
Raising the bar reactor in 1967. The Shah was clear
that his ambitions went beyond
The JCPOA recognised Iran’s
right to maintain a civilian nuclear
Chabahar port are nominally ex
empt from U.S. sanctions, but they
Rahul Gandhi has forced a churn in the
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W
ith Rahul Gandhi stating categorically that he Suvrat Raju nuclear weapons “without a ly, Tehran reiterated that “under so prevented ONGC Videsh, which
would not continue as Congress president, doubt, and sooner than one would no circumstances” would it “ discovered the Farzad B gas fi eld
M
one uncertainty that had gripped the party ore than a year ago, the think.” Nevertheless, the West seek… nuclear weapons.” The off Iran’s coast, from pursuing its
has ended. But this culmination does not end the disor U.S. unilaterally abrogat continued to provide nuclear tech IAEA was granted unprecedented investments there.
der and chaos in the party, which is in a state of paraly ed the Joint Comprehen nology to his government. powers to inspect Iran’s nuclear Further, New Delhi has refused
sis since its rout in the parliamentary election. Mr. sive Plan of Action ( JCPOA) and After the Shah was toppled in unambiguous fatwa against nu activities, and has repeatedly veri to explore several available strate
began to squeeze the Iranian eco 1979, the new government, under clear weapons. fi ed Tehran’s compliance. gies that could ameliorate the im
Gandhi’s letter of resignation is part selfrefl ection,
nomy using sanctions. The latest Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Soon after invading Iraq on the So, when the Trump adminis pact of sanctions. China has main
about the Congress in general and his own personal round of sanctions were an cancelled his plans for a large nu false pretext that it had WMDs, the tration ceased to abide by the tained some commercial ties with
role in it, and part a critique of the state of aff airs of In nounced in June. Iran announced clearenergy sector, retaining only U.S. attempted to build a similar JCPOA last year, this could only be Iran by routing transactions
dian politics. Mr. Gandhi felt the need for introspection a week later that it had exceeded a those facilities that had already narrative around Iran, which had interpreted as a message that the through the Bank of Kunlun. U.S.
and accountability, and restated his longheld position limit set by the JCPOA on its stock been established. Khomeini also established a modest programme U.S. was not interested in arms sanctions on this bank have been
that he was in politics not for power but social change. pile of nuclear fuel. declared that nuclear weapons to enrich uranium to fuel its exist control, but rather in initiating a ineff ective since it is carefully insu
By sticking to his decision to quit as party chief, he has The U.S.Iran confl ict is often and other weapons of mass des ing reactors. The U.S. alleged that direct confl ict with Tehran. lated from the U.S. fi nancial sys
thrown a challenge at his colleagues to fi nd a life out portrayed in the media as one that truction (WMDs) were haram — the fuel was intended for a bomb. tem. European countries have at
involves two fl awed actors strug forbidden in Islam. Whatever one These allegations were undercut An economy devastated tempted to bypass sanctions
side the shelter of the NehruGandhi family. The coterie
gling for supremacy on a complex may think about Khomeini’s go by U.S. intelligence agencies them Over the past year, the U.S. has through a special mechanism
that fl ourished around his mother and predecessor So West Asian stage. But a closer look vernment, his spiritual injunctions selves who reported that “in fall made threats, mobilised troops called INSTEX.
nia Gandhi had reduced politics to manipulation and reveals a simpler underlying reali were taken very seriously. When 2003 Iran halted... nuclear wea and warships, and provoked Teh It is revealing that India has
turned the party into an instrument of vested interests. ty: the Donald Trump administra Iraq attacked Iran with chemical pons... activities”. In 2015, after a ran by fl ying military planes failed to join any of these initia
A small club of selfseekers who reinforce one another tion is using the U.S.’s clout in an weapons, with the tacit support of multiyear investigation, the Inter dangerously close to its border. tives or to develop its own solu
and don’t face the electorate had taken over the Con oldfashioned attempt to assert the Ronald Reagan administra national Atomic Energy Agency However, Washington’s primary tion. A few months ago, Prime Mi
gress years before Mr. Gandhi came on the scene. His the country’s hegemony; Iran is tion, Tehran refrained from res (IAEA) went further, declaring that strategy has been to use economic nister Modi boasted that India’s
just doing whatever it can to resist ponding in kind despite having the “activities relevant to... a nuclear measures as a weapon. It has pre foreign policy had become “fear
letter is an indictment of these leaders, whose personal
U.S. pressure. requisite technology. explosive... did not advance vented foreign entities from trad less, bold and decisive”. Is this
fortunes never waned, even as the party’s plummeted. It is possible that during the beyond feasibility and scientifi c ing with Iran, devastating the Ira fearlessness restricted to India’s
Mr. Gandhi’s limitation is not in his understanding of The Shah connection IranIraq war, some elements studies” and, as a “coordinated ef nian economy. interactions with its smaller neigh
the challenges before the party or the country, or in his The roots of this dispute can be within the Iranian establishment fort”, were only carried out “prior India has also been hurt by bours, or is his government also
vision for both. His inexact articulation is not refl ective traced back to 1953, when the Cen started exploring the possibility of to the end of 2003”. these policies. Until recently, Iran willing to stand up to the biggest
of any insurmountable weaknesses. His real failure has tral Intelligence Agency orches developing a nuclear deterrent. In spite of these facts, succes was one of India’s largest oil sup bully in the room and protect In
been his inability to free the party from the clutches of trated a coup to remove Iran’s Even if this was the case — and the sive U.S. administrations imposed pliers. Even though Iranian oil dia’s interests from Washington’s
elected Prime Minister, Moham evidence on the matter is far from sanctions on Iran, demanding that came with discounts on freight, destructive policies?
what his father Rajiv Gandhi had famously called pow
mad Mossadegh. After instituting conclusive — these activities were it completely halt uranium enrich and favourable terms of payment,
erbrokers. In calling for accountability, he is eff ectively the rule of Shah Mohammad Reza defi nitely stopped by 2003. In the ment. It was only during President the Indian government obeyed Suvrat Raju is a physicist associated with
asking a group to selfdestruct for the larger cause of the Pahlavi, the U.S. encouraged him same year, Khomeini’s successor, Barack Obama’s second term that Washington’s dictates and stopped the Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament
party, which in turn must fi ght for the larger cause of to establish a nuclear programme. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, issued an the U.S. sought a temporary truce, purchasing oil from Iran in May. and Peace. Views are personal
the country. By refusing to be the façade for their paras
itical existence, Mr. Gandhi might have forced a produc
tive churn at all levels. Any moral appeal could only LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
have had a limited impact on the seasoned veterans,
but the example Mr. Gandhi set by accepting responsi Rahul bows out the Emergency, but made a stand for the principles of of the 2019 elections (News twice for the World Cup, after two players got injured.
bility for the defeat while reiterating his commitment to Rahul Gandhi’s resignation strong comeback in 1980 by truth and nonviolence. The page, “Exoffi cials cast doubt does not come as a surprise. Of course, he is not the fi rst
the larger cause might help inspire a resuscitation of as Congress president is a winning back the people’s next president should also on poll result,” July 4). The Mr. Rayadu, a reliable victim of the cricketing
the party. But questions abound. Mr. Gandhi himself rare instance of a leader confi dence. Mr. Gandhi’s put all his eff orts to bring common man was a witness middleorder batsman, was body’s whimsical selection
will remain active in politics, as he has made clear, but accepting responsibility for successor can take a leaf back the breakaway parties to blatant violations of the all along tipped to fi ll the process and, one fears, he
how much authority he would want to exercise remains his party’s defeat in out of Mrs. Gandhi’s book. like Trinamool Congress, the Model Code of Conduct by crucial No. 4 spot in the team will not be the last either.
elections (Page 1, “Rahul Jayant Mukherjee, Nationalist Congress Party leaders and parties, and should have found a N. Viswanathan,
an open question. His insistence on stepping aside also Kolkata Coimbatore
Gandhi formally quits as and the YSR Congress Party transgressions ignored by the place in the original squad.
comes from a realisation that the dynasty tag is more a party chief, makes letter back into the Congress’s fold. Election Commission. The But it was shocking that he more letters online:
drag than a booster for his politics, and the party, in the public,” July 4). The fact ■ The Congress should learn Finally, it should utilise the poll body also did not make was not considered even www.hindu.com/opinion/letters/
current environment. The process of reducing the Con that his party won 19% of to sail through diffi cult times popularity of Mr. Gandhi to public the dissenting opinion
gress to a family enterprise had started with Mr. Gand the national vote share even without a captain from consolidate its presence of Ashok Lavasa. However, corrections & clarifications: >>The report about Telugu
hi’s forbears and their supporters as much as their op attests to its political the NehruGandhi family. It across the country. one wonders whether the poet and activist Varavara Rao being brought to Karnataka —
relevance. The need of the should go back to the K. Muhammed Ismayil, petitioners can expect an “Karnataka police take Varavara Rao into custody in 2005 case”
ponents. Only a family member could have sought to (South page, July 4, 2019) — talks about the 2005 naxal attack in Pa
hour for the party is to leadership system it followed Koduvally, Kerala honest reply from the EC.
challenge the notion that the Congress cannot survive vagada taluk of Kolar district. It should be Tumakuru district.
choose a strong successor in the preIndependence Tharcius S. Fernando,
without the dynasty. If the absence of a NehruGandhi to Mr. Gandhi, someone period, by electing Petition to EC Chennai It is the policy of The Hindu to correct signifi cant errors as soon as possible. Please specify
at the helm was a precondition for the reconfi guration who can help Congress presidents for a year and It is laudable that a group of
the edition (place of publication), date and page. The Readers’ Editor’s office can be
contacted by Telephone: +91-44-28418297/28576300 (11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to
of the Congress and the formation of a viable alternative regain the trust of the conducting sessions in former senior civil servants Rayudu retires Friday); Fax: +91-44-28552963; Email:readerseditor@thehindu.co.in; Mail: Readers’
Editor, The Hindu, Kasturi Buildings, 859 & 860 Anna Salai, Chennai 600 002, India.
to Hindutva, Mr. Gandhi has created that situation. voters. Indira Gandhi lost diff erent parts of the have listed out serious Ambati Rayadu’s decision to All communication must carry the full postal address and telephone number. No personal
the 1977 election following country. The party should irregularities in the conduct retire, after being snubbed visits. The Terms of Reference for the Readers’ Editor are on www.thehindu.com
CM A ND-NDE
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