Centre proposes Rs 33 crore to protect Indian satellites from space debris

The Centre has proposed Rs 33.3 crore for ISRO's 'Project Netra' for securing Indian satellites from space debris and other dangers, according to documents related to supplementary demand for grants.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had moved a resolution for the grants for which the Lok Sabha granted approval last week.

In Sep, India launched the early warning system Netra (Network for Space Objects, Tracking, and Analysis) to secure its satellites and other assets in space at an estimated to cost Rs 400 crore.

Scientists say 50 years of human space exploration has led to the creation of junk around Earth's orbit, posing serious traffic risks to man-made satellites.

India has 15 communication satellites active in the geostationary orbit, 13 remote-sensing satellites active in low-earth orbit (2,000 km radius) and eight navigation satellites in medium-earth orbit. Apart from these, there are a number of smaller satellites present in the space.

Former director of Satish Dhawan Space