Dept of Space allocated Rs 13,949 cr in budget; Rs 4,449 cr more than last fiscal

After a steep cut last year, the Department of Space has been allocated Rs 13,949 crore in this Budget, of which Rs 8,228 crore have been earmarked for capital expenditure. Rs 700 crore has been allocated for the New Space India Limited (NSIL), a newly formed public sector undertaking under the Department of Space. “The New Space India Limited, a PSU under the Department of Space, will execute the PSLV-CS51 launch, carrying the Amazonia Satellite from Brazil, along with a few smaller Indian satellites,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her budget speech. In Budget 2020-21, the Department of Space has been allocated Rs 13,949.09 crore, of which Rs 8,228.63 crore has been earmarked for capital expenditure. This is nearly Rs 900 crore more than what was allocated in 2019-20 and Rs 4,449 crore more than fiscal 2020-21. Last year, Rs 13,479.47 crore was earmarked for the DoS but it was later revised to Rs 9,500 crore. In 2019-20, the DoS was allocated Rs 13,017.61 crore. Sitharaman said as part of Gaganyaan, India’s manned space mission, four Indian astronauts are being trained on Generic Space Flight aspects, in Russia. “The first unmanned launch is slated for December 2021,” she said. It was initially scheduled to be held in December 2020 but had to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.