[Lakshay Beniwal is a student at School of Law, Christ University]
Introduction
India entered the space race in 1963 with the first rocket launch, which was soon followed by the launch of the first satellite named Aryabhatta under Dr Vikram Sarabhai's leadership. Since then, India has come a long way in developing space capabilities in areas like remote sensing, communication, broadcasting, meteorology, disaster mitigation, etc. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has developed advanced capabilities in satellite technology with the Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS) and Geosynchronous Earth Satellite (GSAT). There have been incredible advancements in the launch facilities of ISRO with the development of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV). ISRO has really low launching costs and provides one of the most competitive launch platforms for satellite manufacturers globally. A commercial space arm of ISRO, Antrix, was created to help ISRO deal with satellite manufacturers globally. One would think that with all the advancements that India has made, it would have a robust and well-developed space law. However, that is not true. In fact, several countries with much less mature space programs have well-developed space legislations like Canada, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and most recently even the United Arab Emirates. Five international treaties namely the Outer Space Treaty (1967), Rescue Agreement (1968), Liability Convention (1972), Registration Convention (1976) and the Moon Agreement (1984) govern outer space and related matters; India has ratified four treaties and is a signatory to one. Despite being a spacefaring nation for more than fifty years, India does not have dedicated space legislation. In June 2020, the Union Cabinet approved the creation of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) to regulate the private players' activities in the Indian space industry. While this is a welcome step, there still exist a lot of unregulated areas.
Key Issues
I. Space Debris
Space Debris refers to man-made objects such as defunct satellites, separated rocket boosters, spare parts of satellites, etc., that are orbiting the Earth at incredible speeds with no function whatsoever. If even a small piece of debris hits a satellite, it can compromise its mission. However, removing space debris has posed a lot of legal and technical barriers. Some of the legal issues are regarding liability and responsibility. According to Article VII of the Outer Space Treaty, the launching state shall be liable for damage to another state party if the damage is caused by any of its satellite or satellite parts in the airspace, outer space or the Earth. This subjects the launching state to a great degree of liability. Article VIII of the Outer Space Treaty further adds that "A State Party to the Treaty on whose registry an object launched into outer space is carried shall retain jurisdiction and control over such object and any personnel thereof". After reading these two articles, one can conclude that space debris essentially consists of component parts of the satellites that are launched into outer space. Therefore, space debris becomes the property of the launching state. In order to mitigate space debris several countries have come up with Debris Mitigation guidelines. Countries like France, Finland, Austria, Japan and Nigeria have introduced rules to prevent, mitigate and reduce space debris. India, on the other hand, has still not created any set of rules that focus on the prevention or mitigation of space debris. This is a surprising revelation as India is now a major spacefaring nation.
II. Commercialisation and Privatisation of Space
The space industry in India has been primarily dominated by the public sector. Recently, it was opened to private entities. To oversee the private players, the government has also approved the creation of IN-SPACe. IN-SPACe will act like a regulatory authority and help in the coordination of activities between ISRO and other private entities. This push to the private sector has been made to utilize the Indian space industry's full potential. Until now, private companies usually make subsystems and satellite components for ISRO and cannot compete at a global platform. However, it is essential to understand that a regulatory authority also needs a robust regulatory framework.
III. Space Insurance
With the competitive prices that ISRO provides for launching satellites, several satellite manufacturers have contacted ISRO to facilitate satellite launches. India is the launching state and hence, has to bear international liability for the satellite manufacturer. As the satellite manufacturer enters into a contract with ISRO, it is asked to indemnify the Government of India from any liability incurred. Many national policies of the launching states are designed to ensure that the liability is passed on to private actors in the case of a liability claim. Satellite manufacturers look out to insure their space mission. There are insurance policies for all stages of the mission, i.e. launch stage, separation and placement in orbit. In India, due to the absence of a space legislation, there is no policy governing space liability and insurance issues. With satellites themselves being very expensive, the damage that might be caused in case of a mishap could be so catastrophic that the insurer might not be able to pay it. Countries like the United States, France and Australia have capped the liability for a private enterprise. So in any case, if the liability incurred by the private player is higher than the capped amount, the government shall bear the costs. This will reduce the burden on private entities as well as insurance companies.
Conclusion
Steps like privatizing space and creating a regulatory body are definitely in the right direction. There are 22 nations in the world that have implemented space legislation. Japan, South Korea and Australia are the only ones to do so in the Asia Pacific region. India must strive to do the same as it will also facilitate the implementation of international conventions through national laws. As of now, the government has a virtual monopoly in the space sector as it happens to be a regulator as well as an operator. Before the creation of IN-SPACe, the decision making power for satellite launches, approvals, etc. was with various subcommittees of ISRO, however, these committees do not have a proper policy framework according to which they function. With the emergence of the private sector, it is important that issues like these are addressed at the earliest. Resolving these issues will not only boost investor confidence but also ensure stability in the long run. A comprehensive space policy that is future-ready and covers all aspects of space law like liability, registration, space debris mitigation guidelines will ensure that the Indian space program is on the right track.
Comments