New Delhi: All stakeholders in the defence space arena should work on bolstering India’s counter-space capabilities, chief of defence staff General Anil Chauhan said on Wednesday, in remarks that come in the backdrop of China rapidly developing and deploying potent anti-satellite (A-Sat) weapons.

Indian armed forces will roughly spend over Rs 25,000 crore in the next few years to meet its defence space requirements, ranging from building a constellation of surveillance satellites to secure communications networks.

“It is the right time for the private industry to utilise this opportunity. I think it is time to build a highly-capable atmanirbhar (self-sufficient) defence space ecosystem,” the CDS said, inaugurating the three-day ‘DefSat’ seminar and exhibition here.
The industry should partner the armed forces in augmenting ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) capabilities by developing multi-sensor satellites, launch-on-demand services, and a robust network of ground stations. There is also the need to develop indigenous positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) services by strengthening the NAVIC constellation, he said.
Stakeholders in the defence-space ecosystem also need to focus on counter-space capabilities as a deterrent for safeguarding the country’s space assets from enemy attacks, Gen Chauhan said.
Stressing the “vitality” of space for mankind as well as for the armed forces, CDS said space can be used as a force-multiplier to enhance combat capabilities in the traditional domains of land, air, sea as well as newer ones like cyber-warfare.
During the seminar, Gen Chauhan listed out the major initiatives taken by the government to capitalise on space to strengthen the capabilities of the armed forces.