ISRO Staff Unions Seek Written Clarification on Plans to Hand Rocket Manufacturing to Private Companies

Nine employee associations representing thousands of workers across the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have sent a joint letter to ISRO Chairman and Department of Space Secretary V. Narayanan. Dated September 4, the letter was signed by recognized staff bodies from major facilities, including the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre, and Space Applications Centre. The unions are asking for an official written clarification regarding proposals to hand over the space agency's manufacturing and operational duties to private companies, expressing serious worry over ISRO's future purpose, worker protections, and future hiring.
The protest was sparked by public statements made on August 21 by Pawan Goenka, chairman of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe). Goenka announced that ISRO would eventually stop building launch vehicles entirely, leaving all manufacturing to private businesses or public sector units. The employee groups noted that these remarks received widespread media attention despite having no official policy paper from the Department of Space to explain the legal rules, timelines, or administrative plans. The associations emphasized that designing, assembling, testing, and launching rockets are critical national capabilities rather than simple factory contracts, warning that taking these roles away would reduce ISRO to a minor research-only workshop.
The unions warned that outsourcing rocket and satellite construction could leave existing employees without work, damage promotion opportunities, and cut down future government recruitment for scientific, technical, and administrative positions. While the associations clarified that they do not oppose private sector participation within a balanced system, they argued that helping private firms should not mean dismantling ISRO’s own in-house capabilities. They have demanded a formal, time-bound written confirmation on whether these statements represent approved government policy, along with clear guarantees that no permanent restructuring will take place without first consulting recognized employee unions.