In a significant response to operational insights gained from the May 2025 Operation Sindoor, India is moving swiftly to bolster its defence capabilities by accelerating the deployment of 52 dedicated defence surveillance satellites. This initiative, part of the Phase 3 of the Space-Based Surveillance (SBS) programme, has received backing from the Prime Minister-led Cabinet Committee on Security, with an allocated budget of ₹26,968 crore aimed at achieving deployment by the end of 2029.
Leading the charge is the Defence Space Agency (DSA), which operates under the Integrated Defence Staff of the Ministry of Defence. The ambitious project involves collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), tasked with the launch of 21 satellites. Three private companies have been contracted to construct and launch the remaining 31 satellites, with efforts underway to expedite the timelines for deployment into low Earth orbit (LEO) and geostationary orbit.
The new SBS-3 satellite constellation is poised to significantly enhance surveillance capabilities over key regions, including China and Pakistan, as well as the Indian Ocean. With improved revisit times and higher-resolution imagery, the satellites will equip the armed forces with the ability to detect, track, and identify potential threats long before they reach Indian borders. This advancement is expected to greatly enhance real-time situational awareness and the speed of decision-making in critical situations.
In tandem with the satellite deployment, the Indian Air Force is also focused on acquiring three high-altitude platform system (HAPS) aircraft. These unmanned pseudo-satellites, which operate in the stratosphere, will serve essential roles in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.
The operational lessons from Operation Sindoor highlighted the vital role that domestic satellites, such as Cartosat, alongside foreign commercial satellites, played in monitoring military movements during the intense hostilities between India and Pakistan. Defence officials have underscored the necessity of shortening the OODA (observe, orient, decide, act) loop to preserve an operational advantage in future conflicts.
Additionally, India is actively developing a comprehensive military space doctrine and a satellite shield designed to counter the growing threats posed by China’s expanding military space program, which currently operates over 1,000 satellites, including sophisticated ISR and anti-satellite systems.
Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, the Chief of Integrated Defence Staff, recently underscored the critical importance of expanding India’s surveillance capabilities into adversarial territory, affirming that space represents the ultimate high ground in contemporary warfare.
This expedited satellite initiative marks a pivotal progression in India’s defensive space capabilities, reinforcing its vigilance and preparedness in an era characterized by increasingly contested and technologically sophisticated security challenges.
