CHENNAI: As Kulasekarapattinam is likely to be ready in next two years to launch small satellites, Tamil Nadu is working on a blueprint to create ‘Space Bays’ in Madurai, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Virudhunagar districts on the lines of Space Coast of Florida of the United States, according to the draft Tamil Nadu Space Industrial Policy 2024. The state aims to attract 10,000 crore investments in five years in the sector, officials said.
Banking on two space industrial parks — one for propellants and another for satellites and payload manufacturing — which may create an ecosystem of supply chain in the four districts, the state government is aiming to generate jobs in the four districts through a knowledge-based economy.
The goal is to generate direct and indirect jobs for 10,000 people in 10 years and adoption of space-based technologies in transportation, agriculture, disaster management, and urban planning.
The move will foster growth of companies in Tamil Nadu to capture a portion of the global space market and contribute to the state’s goal of becoming a trillion-dollar economy by 2030, said the policy draft accessed by TNIE.
‘Relying on set up of Tidel Neo in Thoothkudi’
“We want the four districts to be as developed as that of ‘Space Coast’ in Florida. We are offering space-based companies and startups special incentive to set up shop in the four districts,” sources said.
For the propellant industrial park, the land requirement may be anywhere between 500 acres and 700 acres while for the other park, the demand will be need-based.
The propellant industry is central to the goals of space agencies, private companies that are aiming to push boundaries of space exploration. New Indian Space Policy 2023 aimed to shift the nature of space exploration from a government controlled one to a public-private one to ensure that the nation is able to gain a significant share of the huge global space economy. We are relying on Tidel Neo being set up in Thoothkudi for downstream activities of space domain,” official said.