IN-SPACe authorises and supports private space activity, while NSIL and Antrix are government-owned companies that sell ISRO's rockets, satellites and services.
ISRO builds and launches. But someone has to sell its services, and someone has to decide whether a private company may launch a rocket. India has three bodies for these jobs, all under the Department of Space. Under the Space Policy 2023, the Department shares out their duties and makes sure they do not overlap.
Antrix Corporation was set up in September 1992 as a company owned by the Government of India. Its job was to market ISRO's products, offer technical consultancy and transfer ISRO's technology to industry. It has sold remote-sensing data, leased satellite transponders and sold launches on PSLV and GSLV to customers around the world.
NewSpace India Limited was incorporated on 6 March 2019. It is also wholly owned by the government. Besides selling launches and satellite services, NSIL has industry build PSLV and SSLV rockets, builds communication and Earth-observation satellites to order and transfers ISRO technology.
Its revenue grew from ₹321.77 crore in 2021-22 to ₹3,246.09 crore in 2024-25. The 2026-27 Union Budget plans ₹1,403 crore of investment in NSIL from its own resources.
IN-SPACe is an autonomous agency inside the Department of Space, formed after the 2020 space reforms. Under the Space Policy 2023 it is the single window that authorises satellites, launches, launch pads, ground stations and re-entries. It also helps private firms use ISRO's facilities. Its headquarters at Bopal, Ahmedabad, was inaugurated on 10 June 2022. On 17 November 2022 it authorised India's first private rocket launch, Skyroot's Vikram-S.
Worked example: a start-up wants to fly an imaging satellite. It needs IN-SPACe's authorisation to build and operate it. It can buy a PSLV ride through NSIL. If its camera sees detail of 30 cm or finer, it also needs IN-SPACe's permission to share those images.
For each upcoming flight, check who the payload belongs to: ISRO, a foreign customer or a private Indian company. See upcoming Indian launches
Revenue growth. NSIL's revenue rose from ₹321.77 crore to ₹3,246.09 crore in three financial years. The ratio is 3,246.09 ÷ 321.77 ≈ 10.1. The compound annual growth rate is 10.1^(1/3) − 1. Since ln 10.1 ≈ 2.31, divide by 3 to get 0.77, and e^0.77 ≈ 2.16. So revenue grew about 116% a year, more than doubling each year on average.
Who owns the data? The Space Policy 2023 sets clear rules. ISRO's remote-sensing data at a ground sampling distance of 5 m or coarser is free and open to everyone. Finer data is free to government users and sold to private users at fair, transparent prices. Anyone sharing imagery of 30 cm or finer needs IN-SPACe's authorisation; coarser imagery only needs IN-SPACe to be informed.
Money for start-ups. In October 2024 the Union Cabinet approved a ₹1,000 crore venture capital fund under IN-SPACe. It plans to invest ₹10–60 crore per company, which works out to about 40 start-ups. The yearly plan is ₹150 crore in 2025-26, ₹250 crore in each of the next three years and ₹100 crore in 2029-30.
Division of labour. Under the policy, NSIL commercialises technology built with public money, IN-SPACe authorises and promotes non-government activity, and ISRO moves away from making operational systems to focus on research.
IN-SPACe, the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre, an autonomous agency in the Department of Space.
NSIL is a government-owned company that sells ISRO's launches, satellites and technology. IN-SPACe is a regulator and promoter that authorises and supports private space activity.
In September 1992, as ISRO's marketing arm, to sell its products and services and transfer its technology to industry.