[Science Insight] Lessons to Learn from India's Space Industry Development Strategy

I recently watched the 2021 film "Don't Look Up." The movie satirically depicts a scenario in which a giant comet is heading toward Earth, threatening humanity’s extinction. Scientists who speak the truth are dismissed as fools, while others try to exploit the situation politically and economically, rallying the public with the message "Don't look up."

Setting aside curiosity about what ultimately happens to Earth, the film is worth watching if only for the scene where dozens of spaceships are simultaneously launched toward the comet under the command of a global IT company CEO. It goes without saying that the status of the United States, which leads the global space industry through both government and private enterprises, is enviable.

The United States, China, and India are considered the world’s top three space powers, with balanced development in government-led satellite launches, unmanned and manned exploration, and private-sector commercial space industries. While the United States and China are obvious frontrunners, India’s progress is particularly noteworthy.

On January 16, 2025, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) became the fourth country in the world, after Russia, the United States, and China, to successfully achieve space docking. Space docking technology is essential for manned lunar exploration and the construction of independent space stations. On August 23, 2023, Chandrayaan-3 became the first spacecraft to land on the lunar south pole, making India the fourth country to achieve a lunar landing. Ten days later, on September 2, India successfully launched the Aditya-L1 satellite for solar observation. This was followed by the test launch of the Gaganyaan crewed spacecraft into low Earth orbit on October 2, establishing a foundation for manned space exploration. On the first day of 2024, India succeeded in launching the X-ray Polarimeter Satellite (XPoSat), becoming the second country after NASA to launch such a satellite.

One of the greatest assets that made India a top-three space power is its launch vehicle, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). Until SpaceX’s Falcon 9 carried 143 satellites into space in 2021, the PSLV held the world record for launching 104 satellites in a single mission in 2017. Thanks to efficient launches and the ability to carry large numbers of satellites, it is still regarded as one of the world’s lowest-cost rockets.

What is remarkable is that India’s space-related budget barely makes it into the global top ten. According to Euroconsult’s "2024 Government Space Budgets and Shares," India’s budget was $1.889 billion, accounting for 1.4% of the world’s total space budget. This is far less than the United States at $79.678 billion (59%), China at $19.886 billion (14.8%), and Japan at $6.796 billion (5.0%). While it is higher than South Korea’s $1.031 billion (0.8%), the technological gap between the two countries is significant. South Korea only managed to launch a rocket with its own technology in May 2023.

The background to India’s space industry development includes corporate participation, the active transfer of technology to the private sector, and the attraction of foreign direct investment. Since 2020, India has opened its space industry to private companies. More than 140 startups participated in the Chandrayaan-3 lunar landing project in 2023. The number of space-related startups in India has increased from just one in 2014 to more than 200 in 2025.

Under government leadership, a space venture capital fund worth 10 billion rupees (about 160 billion won) has been established, and support has been provided for the transfer of space-related technologies to the private sector. In 2014, regulations were removed to allow foreign companies to invest in Indian space sectors such as launch vehicle and satellite manufacturing without government approval.

As South Korea, led by the Korea Aerospace Administration, seeks to transition to a private-sector-led space industry ecosystem, it is necessary to benchmark India and pursue practical cooperation measures for technology transfer and related initiatives.