Union Budget 2023: Space industry's wishlist

In order to boost local manufacturing and spur research and development, space industry wants the upcoming budget to announce production linked incentive (PLI) scheme and provide incentives to entities engaged in the sector.

Budget 2023- space industry

Kranthi Chand, the head of strategy and special projects, DhruvaSpace also wants the government to make a dedicated allocation of Rs 1,000 crore for the Defence Space Agency (DSA) for the procurement of new technology from the industry.

According to Indian Space Association (ISpA) Director General Lieutenant General AK Bhatt (Retd), the suggestions were received from the space industry on tax policies and incentives to promote investment, research and development, and employment in the space sector.

The ISpA also wants the government to provide financial support through loans, grants and tax incentives to the companies and organisations in the space sector.

India's nascent private space sector has presented a wishlist of tax incentives and a production-linked incentive scheme in the upcoming Union Budget to boost local manufacturing and spur research and development.

Considering that most space-tech companies in India are startups and access to capital is an issue, it would be beneficial to create parity in terms of the short-term capital gains tax rate and treatment with respect to listed and unlisted entities, and also provide exemption from angel tax, the ISpA said.

Bhatt also wants the government to set up space technology parks and form a group of experts for the use of the space ecosystem.

India's space economy was pegged at USD 9.6 billion in 2020 and was expected to touch USD 12.8 billion by 2025, according to a report released by the ISpA and EY last year.