Space · ISRO

India's space programme was founded in 1969 under Vikram Sarabhai, growing from a modest science effort into one of the world's most cost-effective space agencies — with more than 100 launches from Sriharikota and over 430 foreign satellites placed in orbit. Milestones stacked up: the first Moon mission Chandrayaan-1 (2008), the Mars Orbiter Mission (2013-14, which reached Mars on the very first attempt), and in August 2023 Chandrayaan-3, which made India the first country to land near the Moon's south pole. The sector was opened to private players in 2020, with IN-SPACe now authorising private activity, and the national space economy was estimated at about $8.4 billion in 2023.

Recent milestones came quickly. In January 2025, the SpaDeX mission made India the fourth nation to master satellite docking in orbit — a key step toward a space station. ISRO marked its 100th launch from Sriharikota, launched the NASA-ISRO NISAR Earth-observation satellite in July 2025, and saw astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla fly to the ISS. The Aditya-L1 solar observatory began returning data.

ISRO's reputation rests on doing more with less. Its workhorse PSLV rocket has launched hundreds of satellites reliably and cheaply, while the heavier GSLV / LVM3 carries big payloads like Chandrayaan and the future crew capsule; launches fly from Sriharikota on the east coast. India's famously low costs come from frugal engineering and in-house manufacturing. Since the 2020 opening, a private sector of 400-plus space startups now builds components and small satellites under IN-SPACe and NSIL.

The next chapter is human spaceflight. Gaganyaan — which would make India one of the few nations able to send humans to space independently — has its first uncrewed flight targeted for the fourth quarter of 2026, followed by two more uncrewed missions by 2027 before the first crewed flight. Beyond it, ISRO plans the first module of the Bharatiya Antariksh Station by 2028, a full station by 2035, and a crewed Moon landing by 2040.

Chandrayaan-3 — first at the lunar south pole (2023). 4th nation to master space docking (SpaDeX, 2025). $8.4 billion space economy (2023). 434 foreign satellites launched (January 2026). ₹13,416 crore space budget (2025-26). Gaganyaan first uncrewed flight targeted for late 2026. Sources: ISRO, Department of Space, PIB.