What do commercial space missions mean for India?

Good morning!

Spacetech has become a buzzword in the Indian startup ecosystem since last year. New spacetech reforms, including private players, have boosted the opportunity for commercial space missions. 

Several space-tech startups are building their own satellites and launch vehicles to contribute to India’s commercial space missions. 

For example, the deployment of small satellites can help in enabling IoT networks, ensuring communication and internet reach, and for earth observation. In fact, the sector has opened up to the private players at a time when a lot of industrial infrastructure and ecosystems are already in place.

As the spacetech startup ecosystem is readying itself to successfully launch its own commercial space missions, investor interest in the sector is also rising. 

The year 2021 has already seen three big investment deals, with Agnikul and Skyroot each raising $11 million in May — the most raised in the sector to date, and Pixxel raising $7.3 million earlier in March.

However, the question remains, how will the increased number of commercial space missions help India? Read more.

The Interview

In the newly launched series C-Suite, Kamal Bali, Managing Director of Volvo Group India, tells EnterpriseStory about the trillion-dollar manufacturing opportunity for India. And why it is essential for the country as a competitive advantage.

Editor’s Pick: Techie Tuesday

Using technology for your own good may not impress many, but making a difference at a community level means everything. This has been the mantra of Rikin Gandhi ever since he stepped into the lives of Indian farmers in 2006.

Today, as the founder and CEO of Digital Green, a not-for-profit and spin-off entity of Microsoft Research, Rikin is working with government bodies and training frontline workers to use digital tools to assess gaps, collect data, and use technology as an entry point to transform systems. Read more.

Startup Spotlight

NextGen InVitro Diagnostics ensures accurate TB diagnosis

India, which bears a disproportionately large burden of the world's TB cases, recorded 24 lakh tuberculosis cases and more than 79,000 deaths due to the disease in 2019. Data from the Indian Journal of Community Medicine reveals about 4.8 lakh people lose their life to TB in India every year.

Gurugram-based medtech startup NextGen InVitro Diagnostics (NGIVD) is working to solve this problem. With a focus on diagnosing tuberculosis, the startup aims to provide an affordable and accurate diagnosis of infectious diseases. Read more.

News & Updates

• Paytm said it received approval from its shareholders to push ahead with its plans of a Rs 16,600 crore initial public offering (IPO). Shareholders have also approved a resolution for the company to raise Rs 12,000 crore in fresh equity.

• Swiggy elevated Phani Kishan, an early employee of the startup since 2015, to the Co-founder role. Phani, who was most recently Head of Strategy and Investments at Swiggy, has held multiple roles over the past six years, including as Chief of Staff to the CEO.

• Paytm Money announced the launch of an innovative feature that allows users to apply for initial share sales before the actual IPO opening in the markets. Zomato is the first IPO on Paytm Money launched with this feature, and thousands have already placed their orders.

• Hero Electric Vehicles plans to invest Rs 700 crore by 2025 to rev up its business expansion, including setting up a new manufacturing unit with an annual capacity of 10 lakh units, for which it has raised Rs 220 crore to part-fund the activities.

• Ahead of billionaire entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson's maiden trip to suborbital space on Virgin Galactic's rocket ship Unity 22, Tesla Founder Elon Musk reserved a seat on the latter's flight at a price of $10,000.

Before you go, stay inspired with… 

"Private sector participation in commercial space activities has the potential to catalyse new investments at scale, build new space-based applications, and reduce costs by making value chains more efficient and achieving scale.”

— Pawan Kumar Chandana, Co-founder, and CEO of Skyroot Aerospace

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