The Need for Indian Space Laws
To Infinity and Beyond?*
India’s relationship with space dates back to the 1960s when the first rocket was launched under the guidance of Dr Vikram Sarabhai. Since then, the country’s advancement in the realm of space has put it on the path towards becoming a space superpower. To supplement my claim, here is a brief timeline of the advancements ISRO has made in the first half of 2017:
05/06/2017: ISRO launches the most powerful home-made rocket
20/05/2017: NASA, ISRO agree to build an Earth-imaging satellite
05/05/2017: ISRO launches “South Asian Satellite”
02/04/2017: ISRO turns towards the private sector for satellite manufacturing
15/02/2017: ISRO launches 104 satellites in a single mission
With missions in areas of communication, broadcasting, meteorology, oceanography, monitoring the environment, and predicting natural disasters, India has put itself in the league of space giants that include Russia, China and the USA. Of the five treaties regarding activities in outer space, India has ratified four and signed one. However, India seems to still be a step behind the others.
The only legal framework supporting India’s space ventures is the Satellite Communication Policy 2000 and the Remote Sensing Data Policy 2011 (revised). There is very little participation from the private sector in space ventures and the government still shuts the door regarding commercialization of space. Government entities hold a monopoly over the space sector. However, the government does resort to outsourcing albeit at a minimum level.
Another reason why the USA is able to monetize space is because of its laws on competition in space. The U.S. Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act of 2015 allows the citizens of the USA to “engage in the commercial exploration and exploitation of ‘space resources’”. This law, among others, have enabled the likes of Elon Musk’s Space X and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin to take the driving seat in space technology.
The lack of domestic space laws has also resulted in India being a victim of loopholes in international treaties. The growing concern over space debris has proved to be a problem for India as the nation finds itself in the midst of a dispute with Japan regarding the fall of Indian space debris on a Japanese village. With India being a signatory to the Convention on International Liability for Damage Caused by Space Objects (1972), India is obligated to compensate for any destruction of property in the village. However, the treaty does not mention the quantum of compensation to be paid by India to Japan. This loophole allows Japan to extract funds from India that could exceed the actual amount of damage. Had there been a domestic law or a national policy that addressed space debris in India, the verdict could have differed.
A national policy on space would help space entrepreneurship flourish in India. This would lead to a decrease in brain drain and an increase in brain gain from developed nations as these start-ups would create employment with specific skill sets. Furthermore, a policy enabling the privatization of space would also help India gain new technology and allow it to expand its horizons from launching satellites to the commercial mining of space.
India is currently taking small steps towards contriving accurate space laws. The Space Activities Bill 2017 has been drafted and is pending approval in the Parliament. This bill would promote, support, and regulate space activities in India by allowing private and non-governmental agencies to involve themselves in space exploration. However, this would be done under the guidance of the Department of Space. This Bill is similar to the U.S. Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act and will, in addition, provide special non- transferable licenses to enterprises engaging in space activities. If any person/entity/enterprise fails to obtain a license before commercially exploring space, they are liable to a fine of ₹1 crore and/or imprisonment up to 3 years.
These steps can only act as a precursor for a bigger picture. The government needs to move out of its comfort zone and trust private enterprises. They need to host competitions like the Open Sky Technologies Fund by the European Space Agency and have national policies on space to counter the loopholes presented by international treaties. The presence of Space Sector in the Make in India campaign has to be exploited and the only way of receiving foreign funding is by placing focus on India’s space sector and providing incentives. If India wants to send a manned mission to space by 2022 as promised by Shri Narendra Modi, then India needs to, on a tangent, work on its policies and initiatives.
*This article is a precursor to a research paper on the same subject. Written by Jayanth Deshmukh.
