Government invests Rs 211 Cr under Fund of Funds for spacetech startups

The Union Government has announced an investment support of Rs 211 crore (around $25 million) under the Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) scheme, giving a significant push to India’s growing space-tech sector. 

Union Minister Piyush Goyal stated that the investment will empower homegrown innovators in space technology with critical resources, propelling India as a rising global space power. Guided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision, the government is committed to driving innovation, youth-led entrepreneurship, and transformative use of space technology.

The FFS scheme, operationalised by SIDBI, catalyses venture capital investments by supporting SEBI-registered Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), which in turn invest in startups. As of June 30, 2025, commitments worth Rs 9,994 crore have been made to 141 AIFs, which are mandated to invest at least twice the amount in startups.

As per market research, India’s space sector has expanded rapidly, with over 350 startups actively innovating in the field. The country’s space budget has also nearly tripled in the past decade, rising from Rs 5,615 crore in FY14 to Rs 13,416 crore in FY26.

Earlier in March this year, Union minister Jitendra Singh had announced a Rs 1,000 crore funding scheme to boost space sector startups. Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also threw a bold challenge to India’s spacetech startups: create five unicorns in the next five years and scale annual rocket launches from the current 5–6 to 50.

Recently, Reliance Industries has been in talks to lead a $50 million (Rs 430 crore) funding round in Digantara Research & Technologies. This would place it among the top-funded Indian spacetech startups, alongside Skyroot, Pixxel, NewSpace, Agnikul Cosmos, SatSure, and others.