NEW DELHI: Space regulator IN-SPACe has approved and signed under the PPP model an agreement with a private consortium for the country’s first indigenous, fully commercial earth observation constellation, with a view to enhancing the country’s space-based observation capabilities and building a self-reliant earth observation (EO) ecosystem in the country, minister for department of space Jitendra Singh informed Lok Sabha on Wednesday in response to a Parliament question.The consortium named Allied Orbits Private Limited is led by Pixxel Space India and includes Dhruva Space, PierSight Space and Satsure Analytics India. It will invest more than Rs 1,200 crore for setting up the constellation, which is to be developed and operationalised by 2029.
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The consortium will design, build, own and operate the 12-satellite constellation, which will have panchromatic, multispectral, hyperspectral and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) capabilities, supported by indigenous ground infrastructure. All satellites are to be manufactured domestically and launched on Indian launch vehicles, with mission control based in the country.The programme includes designing, fabrication, integration and the testing of EO satellites, including five ultra-high resolution optical satellites with 4 bands, 3 multispectral satellites with 8 bands, 2 hyperspectral optical satellites with 250 bands and 2 Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites in X-band, by the Indian industry. The EO programme will use Indian launch vehicles (either private or Isro facilities) for placing the satellites into orbit. The programme also allows collaboration with academic and research institutions for capacity building and application development, the minister said.
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