Six companies in advanced talks for spacetech hub in Khoraj: IN-SPACe chief

Ahmedabad: About half a dozen companies are at ‘advanced stage’ of talks to be part of the Space Technology Park at Khoraj near Ahmedabad, Dr Pawan Kumar Goenka, chairman of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe), told TOI on Thursday. The project, announced last month, will be developed with focus on payloads and satellites by the Gujarat govt with technical guidance from IN-SPACe.An anchor company has started work on the project, Goenka said, on the sidelines of the two-day 10^th IN-SPACe Industry Connect in Ahmedabad. “Half a dozen companies are in advanced dialogue stage (for Khoraj) whereas talks are also on with 3-4 companies for the Tamil Nadu cluster. The announcements will attract fair amount of investment,” he said. “For the companies coming here, it is plug-and-play model and common technological facilities. For Khoraj cluster, it is also the proximity to IN-SPACe resources.”The IN-SPACe chairman added that they have budget of Rs 500 crore to boost spacetech in India, of which Rs 200 crore was earmarked for the specialised clusters in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. “We can support 3-4 more clusters elsewhere,” he said, adding that the Industry Connect was aimed at highlighting the opportunities for companies and startups.Meanwhile, the Gujarat govt and IN-SPACe signed an MoU for development of common technical facilities (CTFs) for the cluster. The CTF will entail Class 100,000 clean room for development of space-specific equipment and instruments, thermos-vacuum chamber for climate simulation, vibration testing system for payloads up to 12 tonne weight, EMI/EMC testing facilities for payloads meant for space, magnetic field testing infrastructure, and calibration of optics for Earth observation, said senior officials.The event saw participation of Dr Jitendra Singh, Union minister of state (MoS) for science and technology; and Dr V Narayanan, chairman of ISRO; along with senior govt and private sector officials.Singh in his address called upon industry leaders to significantly scale up investment and participation in India’s space sector to accelerate development of globally competitive indigenous technologies and reduce dependence on external sources.“What began with a handful of pioneering enterprises has now evolved into an ecosystem comprising over 400 startups and several hundred large and small companies. Indian enterprises are today developing launch vehicles, satellites, propulsion systems, Earth observation applications, space situational awareness capabilities and a range of downstream solutions,” he said.Calling for the emergence of a stronger culture of philanthropy in scientific research, the MoS noted that while philanthropic contributions have traditionally been directed towards charitable causes, investment in research and innovation should also be recognised as an important service to society.