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“Being a big anchor customer, I think there should be government support,” Pixel Space founder and CEO Awais Ahmed told PTI.
He said the government has taken good steps by introducing the Research, Development and Innovation Fund and the Deep-Tech Fund and wants the money to flow into capital expenditure-heavy businesses that have the potential to make India a powerhouse in the space and AI sectors.
The Indian Space Association (ISPA) and consultancy firm Deloitte have recommended that the government recognize space assets as critical infrastructure to allow low-cost, long-term financing for the sector.
“Recognizing space infrastructure as a distinct infrastructure sub-sector is essential to unlocking scale, private investment and global competitiveness,” said ISPA, which represents the space sector industry.
It said Indian private players now have proven capabilities in satellites, launch systems, EO data and ground infrastructure, but scaling up is being hampered by a lack of assured government demand.
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“The formal procurement mandate will boost industry growth, while allowing ISRO to focus on strategic and exploratory missions,” the space industry body said.
ISPA reported that NASA purchases 80% of its systems from industry, while the European Space Agency (ESA) also follows a 90% industry-based procurement model.
“Recognizing space infrastructure as critical infrastructure can unlock low-cost financing, while rationalizing taxes and duties on specialized launch components as well as reducing customs GST and indirect taxes for deep tech can significantly reduce cost pressures,” Srinath Ravichandran, founder and CEO of Agnikul Cosmos, told PTI.
Deeper, results-driven collaboration with ISRO and IN-SPACe, with clear long-term buy-in, will be equally important, said Ravichandran, whose Agnikul Cosmos plans the maiden orbital flight of its launch vehicle Agnibaan to place small satellites in low Earth orbit.
“The expanded government-backed funding pool for deep-tech and space missions, as well as targeted financial incentives for indigenous satellite manufacturing and payload development, can significantly reduce the risks to early deployment,” said Suyash Singh, co-founder and CEO of GalaxyEye.
Singh said clarity on long-term procurement policies, especially for defense and strategic geospatial applications, will be crucial in enabling startups to plan mission-ready platforms with confidence.
GalaxyEye aims to launch Mission Sight – a multi-sensor satellite that will enable all-weather Earth-imaging by integrating data obtained from optical and radar sensors.
“Additionally, policy support for downstream commercialization of satellite data through standardized access frameworks and incentives for data adoption can unlock broader economic value while strengthening India’s strategic and climate-monitoring capabilities,” Singh said.
ISPA and Deloitte said space infrastructure underpins telecommunications, defence, navigation, finance, weather forecasting, disaster management and governance.
He said formal recognition would help access infrastructure-grade financing, reduce the cost of capital by 2-3% and strengthen national resilience.
ISPA also suggested that all ministries, state governments and ULBs purchase satellite imagery and geospatial data only from listed Indian companies.
It suggested setting up a geo-tagging framework for all space entities and authorized users; Geo-tagged, limited access to sensitive satellite data to authorized entities, ensuring data security and regulatory compliance.
Krishnau Acharya, co-founder and CEO of Suhora Technologies, expects targeted measures to accelerate the downstream space economy, especially for converting satellite data into actionable insights for defence, agriculture, disaster management and climate resilience.
“With the growing demand and adoption of geospatial intelligence among government and defense agencies, we also wish to propose a special fund to develop talent pipelines and train academics in priority use cases,” Acharya said.
He also expects the budget to significantly increase defense sector allocation for satellite data analytics, empowering ISR, terrain surveillance and maritime domain awareness, leading to greater integration of made-in-India private solutions into defense operations for strategic superiority.