Nine ISRO associations question proposed shift to private manufacturing
Nine employee associations at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have sought clarification from chairman V Narayanan over reports of plans to shift some of the agency’s manufacturing and operational activities to private companies.
In a letter dated September 4, the associations questioned what role ISRO would retain under the proposed changes and raised concerns over the impact on existing employees, sanctioned posts, vacancies and future recruitment.
The associations referred to remarks made by Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) chairman Pawan Goenka on August 21, in which he said ISRO would eventually stop manufacturing launch vehicles, with such activities being undertaken by private companies or public sector undertakings.
The employee bodies said no official communication had accompanied the remarks explaining the policy framework, legal basis, implementation timeline or implications for the workforce.
They sought clarity on whether the design, development, integration, testing and launch of vehicles such as the PSLV, LVM3 and SSLV would continue to remain with ISRO. They also asked how the proposed changes would affect recruitment of scientific, technical, administrative and industrial personnel across ISRO centres.
The associations stressed that technologies developed by ISRO constitute national assets and argued that any transfer of such capabilities should be transparent and aligned with strategic, safety and employment considerations.
Responding to the concerns, Goenka said ISRO and private industry would need to work together to achieve India’s target of 50 launches annually by 2030.
He said private companies could increasingly manufacture and scale mature launch vehicles and satellites, while ISRO would concentrate on advanced scientific and strategic missions, emerging technologies and complex infrastructure.
Goenka maintained that the plan was not aimed at reducing ISRO’s importance, but at building a larger Indian space ecosystem with the agency continuing to lead frontier research and national missions.
with inputs from PTI