Union Budget 2024-2025: India is taking big strides in the space sector and the number of startups in this industry increased from 1 in 2014 to a whopping 189 in 2023 and the count is increasing everyday. Quite expectedly, the sector is one of the talking points and all eyes will be on how much allocation it will get in the upcoming Budget. In the Interim Union Budget for 2024-25, there was only a nominal hike of 4% in the allocation for the Department of Space (from Rs 12,545 crore to Rs 13,043 crore). This close on the heels of the 8% drop in allocation in the previous fiscal was a key disappointment.
As a result, as the Modi 3.0 Cabinet gets ready to table the Budget in July, all eyes are on what’s in store for the development of the space sector, given the launch lineup in FY25.
Major launches slated for 2024
As per reports, 2024 is going to be a busy year. The main launches include the Gaganyaan test flight (uncrewed), third developmental flight of the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle, and the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar mission.
Reportedly, scientists and engineers at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have also been working on satellite propulsion systems, propellants, and new launch vehicles.
Beyond the Moon…Mars
In 2024, the next Mars mission, (Mars Orbiter Mission 2 or Mangalyaan 2), has been proposed for launch. It is pertinent to mention here that the newer spacecraft will be quite heavier and better equipped than its predecessor.
GEOINT satellites
Between 2024 and 2028, reportedly, a family of 50 artificial intelligence-based satellites will be launched by ISRO to collect geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) in different orbits to track military movements and photograph places of interest.
For the sake of the security of the country, the satellites will observe the neighboring areas and the international border.
In space, at different orbits, each satellite using artificial intelligence will have the ability to communicate and collaborate with the remaining satellites to monitor the environment for intelligence-gathering operations.
Clearly, India’s space sector has some elaborate plans and these plans will require a considerable amount of allocations from the government.
Union Budgets: What’s been done so far?
- Budget 2020-2021
In the 2020-2021 Budget, the Finance Ministry allocated Rs 13,479
crore to the Department of Space (DoS).
- Budget 2021-2022
In the 2021-2022 Budget, the Finance Ministry allocated Rs 12,642 crores to the Department of Space (DoS).
- Budget 2022-2023
In the 2022-2023 Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman allocated Rs 13,700 crore to the Department of Space (DoS).
- Budget 2023-2024
In the 2023-24 Union Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman allocated Rs 12,543.91 crore to the Department of Space (DoS).
- Interim Budget 2024-2025
In the 2024-2025 Interim Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman allocated Rs 13042.75 crore to the Department of Space (DoS).