The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is looking at substantial growth in space activities in the private sector, following the adoption of a new space policy in 2023 by the Centre, Sreedhara Panicker Somanath, the chairman of ISRO, said in Siliguri on Sunday.

“After the successful Chandrayaan mission, the world is looking at us. We announced Space Act reforms in 2020 and a new space policy was adopted by the government in 2023. These enabled private companies and institutions to come and work together,” said Somanath at Delhi Public School in Fulbari on the southern outskirts of Siliguri.

Somanath, who is a scientist and engineer and has contributed to India’s space programmes including Chandrayaan-III, joined an interaction with Sailesh Singhal, the founder of Youth of India Foundation.

“I invite the youths of Siliguri to the Sriharikota Space Centre. They will come to know how we work.... It is really exciting that we can explore human space flight activities, explore the moon and other planets, build space stations, and do human activities....,” added Somanath, who also interacted with DPS students during a Q&A.

Somanath also pointed out that India had successfully landed its Chandrayaan-III Vikram lander on the south polar region of the moon on August 23 last year. “To commemorate this feat, August 23 has been declared as National Space Day by the government of India,” he said.

He stated that the Prime Minister’s vision is to send an astronaut to the moon by 2040.