Beforehand India’s internal space market has been closed to private players. The only organization that has been allowed to engage in space activity in India has been the Indian Space Research Organization or the ISRO. The ISRO has received plenty of international claims for being one of the most cost effective space agencies in the world. But private players have only been involved in these machines as helpers for the ISRO. They hadn’t made machines of their own or engaged to space activities independently.
In June 2020 the Indian government made a monumental decision, they decided to open India’s space up. The private players are finally free to pursue space related business on their own. They can build their own rockets and satellites, they sell space services to other commercial players and they can even use ISRO’s facilities to test their products and launch their vehicles in space. Plenty of Indian space tech startups have been taking advantage of this new opportunity in an effort to make a name for India’s space industry and increase the global market share. Some of such startups are listed below
1.Pixxel
Pixel was founded by Awais Ahmed and Kshitij Khandelwal in 2019. Pixel was a Bengaluru based startup that is building a constellation of 24-30 small earth imaging satellites collecting data that can help organizations all around the world to detect, monitor and predict global phenomenon in real time. The company already built its first satellite was scheduled to launch in 202 but has been rescheduled to march 2021. Today Pixxel has raised a total of $5.7million that is 42.3 crore Rupees from investors like Blume ventures, growX venture, Lightspeed India partners investors capital partners and Techstars starburst space accelerators.
2.Bellatrix Aerospace
Founded by Rohan Ganapathy, Nuthan Prasanna and Yashas Karanam in 2015. Bellatrix Aerospace is a Bengaluru based space tech startup. Their plan was to make satellite launches more affordable and accessible to everybody. Bellatrix’s space vehicle is more likely to launch to the lower orbit of the earth in 2023. Its “taxi in space” will offer ridesharing for small satellites and drop each one of the passengers to their intended slots in space, said Yashas. The startup is planning to do this by pioneering a reusable micro launch vehicle called ‘Chetak’ and a medium category launch vehicle called ‘Garuda’ which will be capable of carrying payloads up to 200kg and 1000kg respectively. Apart from these two vehicles Bellatrix has also built electric as well as chemically powered engines or thrusters to manoeuvre satellites in space. Bellatrix has raised $3million that is 22crore Rupees from investors like First Cheque Bellatrix has built electric as well as chemically powered engines or thrusters to manoeuvre satellites in space.
3.Skyroot Aerospace
Skyroot Aerospace was founded by Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka in 2018. Skyroot Aerospace is a Hyderabad based space tech startup that is looking to build its series of Vikram launch vehicles that will be capable of launching payloads weighing 200 to 700 kg into low-earth orbit.
4.Agnikul Cosmos
Founded by Srinath Ravichandran and Moin SPM in 2016, Agnikul Cosmos is a Chennai based company space tech startup. Indian space startup Agnikul Cosmos has ranked as the world’s first company to successfully test a fully 3D printed rocket engine. Angikul has taken the initial approach to 3D print the entire Agnilet engine as one part. This would create the engine lighter and have scope for little errors, a fact proven by its affluent test.
Agnikul is building a small rocket that can launch 100 kg satellites into low earth orbit. The rocket, which can be moved on a mobile platform, is looking forward for its first launch by the end of 2022.
5.Vesta Space
Founded by Arun Kumar Sureban in 2018. So far they have launched 4 satellites and in the future they are planning on to launch 35 more to create a next generation 5G satellite constellation over India. The project will also involve setting up 8 ground stations and 31 data receptors across the country so the 5G network reaches all of India’s urban and remote areas. Vesta space technology has raised $10million which is $75 crore Rs from Next capital tech.
