“A nation with a strong base in science and technology is a nation with a strong backbone” — these words of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam ring truer than before as India celebrated its second National Space Day on August 23. Following Chandrayaan-3’s soft-landing near the lunar south pole to the upcoming Gaganyaan and Chandrayaan missions, the Bharat Antariksh Station, and beyond, the Indian space programme is set to make history many times over.
Yet an essential component remains grounded: the legal architecture. In the race to explore, innovate, and commercialise outer space, the law is the launchpad for sustainable, equitable, and safe space activities. Without it, space ambitions risk being propelled without a navigational map.
Global legal backbone
The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 establishes that space is the province of all humankind, prohibits national appropriation, and places responsibility on states for national activities in space, whether conducted by government or private entities. Its companion agreements create binding frameworks of rights, responsibilities, and liability rules.
However, these treaties are not self-executing. According to Aarti Holla-Maini, director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), “The core United Nations treaties on outer space provide the foundational principles for all space activities: from the peaceful use of outer space to the responsibility and liability of states. National legislation is the means by which nations can give effect to these principles domestically, ensuring that their growing space sectors develop in a safe, sustainable, and internationally responsible way.”
India has ratified the key UN space treaties but it is still in the process of enacting comprehensive national space legislation that fully operationalises these international commitments.
From paper to practice
Space policy may signal intent but law is what creates an enforceable structure. Policies can guide and inspire but only statutory law can mandate compliance and provide legal certainty.
“National space legislation offers predictability, legal clarity, and a stable regulatory environment for both government and private actors,” Rossana Deim-Hoffmann, UNOOSA Global Space Law Project Lead, said. “It operationalises international commitments, enables effective oversight, and embeds sustainability into everyday practice. For industry, this clarity fosters investment and innovation; for regulators, it provides the tools to manage activities responsibly in line with the applicable global framework.”
Many countries now have national space legislation. Japan, Luxembourg, and the US have enacted frameworks to facilitate licensing, liability coverage, and commercial rights over space activities and resources.
India’s regulatory evolution
India’s approach to space legislation reflects a methodical, incremental strategy. As space law expert Ranjana Kaul notes, the legislative process is “under way”.
“It should be understood that national space legislation includes two cardinal interdependent aspects: (i) technical regulations governing space operations in orbit by commercial entities — this is the first aspect of ‘authorisation’ process under Article VI [of the Outer Space Treaty]. The Department of Space is proceeding meticulously in this matter.”
This methodical approach has yielded concrete regulatory developments, including: the Catalogue of Standards for the Space Industry, critical for ensuring the safety of space operations, and the the Indian Space Policy, providing details of activities that non-governmental entities are encouraged to undertake — both in 2023; and the IN-SPACe Norms Procedure Guidelines (NPG) for Authorisation to implement the Space Policy in 2024.
According to Dr. Kaul, “IN-SPACe has addressed certain ground segment activities and establishing satellites in orbit. NPG for launch vehicles and other aspects will undoubtedly be issued in due course.”
However, the second component is still pending: “the overarching regulatory framework (textual part) — this is the … ‘space activities law’ that will contain provisions of the OST that are meticulously, carefully, appropriately drafted.”
Industry perspectives
From the industry’s standpoint, the current regulatory transition creates significant operational challenges. Gp. Capt. T.H. Anand Rao (retd.), director of the Indian Space Association, identified priorities for national space legislation beginning with the fundamental need for a statutory authority.
“IN-SPACe, which currently operates without formal legal backing, requires clear statutory authority to strengthen its role as the central regulatory body,” Rao said. “The national space law should clearly set out licensing rules, qualifications, application processes, timelines, fees, and reasons for acceptance or denial, to avoid unnecessary delays and confusion from multiple ministry approvals.”
The dual-use nature of space technologies creates particular complications, with companies facing delays from multiple ministry clearances even after provisional approvals. Clear FDI rules, such as allowing 100% FDI in satellite component manufacturing under automatic routes, would attract critical capital for startups to scale operations. This operational clarity extends to liability frameworks, where Rao emphasised that “while India is ultimately responsible internationally, private companies must hold proper third-party insurance to cover any damages. The law should lay out transparent steps for reporting incidents and handling claims,” while creating affordable insurance frameworks for startups managing high-value space assets.
Innovation protection remains equally crucial: “legislation should secure intellectual property rights without excessive government control, encourage partnerships among industry, academia, and government, and foster investor trust.”
This balanced approach would prevent migration of talent and technologies to more IP-friendly jurisdictions. Rao stressed the need for binding safety standards, mandatory accident investigation procedures, enforceable space debris management laws, unified frameworks for space-related data and satellite communications, and an independent appellate body to prevent conflicts of interest.
Without statutory backing, IN-SPACe’s regulatory decisions remain vulnerable to procedural challenges, creating uncertainty for private players navigating India’s growing commercial space ecosystem.
Legal gaps versus geopolitical challenges
The risks of regulatory gaps must be viewed in the proper context.
“The risk is not the absence of binding legal framework — the OST is an extraordinary treaty that even without being ‘binding’ has not had a single incident when one state conducted a hostile/aggressive activity against another state in outer space,” Dr. Kaul said. “The risk to the Outer Space Treaty is the absence of political consensus consequent to big power contestations among the three military space super powers.”
The perspective suggests that while domestic legal clarity is important for commercial development, the greater threats to space governance emerge from international geopolitical tensions rather than national legislative delays.
The question is no longer whether India needs comprehensive space legislation but when the methodical groundwork already laid will culminate in binding statutory law. With the International Astronautical Congress meeting in Sydney this year and potentially in India in the near future, the timing is significant.
Shrawani Shagun is a researcher focusing on environmental sustainability and space governance.
