On February 4, 2026, Union Minister of State for Space Jitendra Singh announced that the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has set an ambitious target of 18 orbital missions for the year 2026. This figure includes six launches from Indian private-sector space companies — Skyroot Aerospace, Agnikul Cosmos, and Pixxel — marking a significant milestone in India's emerging commercial space economy.
The announcement comes in the context of ISRO's ongoing recovery from the PSLV-C62 mission failure, which had disrupted the agency's launch cadence. Separately, ISRO acknowledged persistent NaVIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation) atomic clock issues that have affected the reliability of certain navigation payloads. Despite these setbacks, the 2026 mission slate is the most ambitious in ISRO's history.
Among the key missions planned is the Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme, for which the GSLV Mk-III (also called LVM3) will serve as the launch vehicle. The year will also see tests involving ISRO's Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) and Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV), as well as precursor missions for the Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS), India's planned space station.
The inclusion of six private-sector launches is particularly significant. Skyroot Aerospace has developed the Vikram series of rockets; Agnikul Cosmos is advancing its semi-cryogenic Agnibaan launch vehicle; and Pixxel is building a constellation of hyperspectral Earth observation satellites. The policy enabling this ecosystem is IN-SPACe (Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre), which governs private space participation.
India's expanding launch capacity, combined with IN-SPACe's streamlined authorisation, positions the country as a growing launch services provider in the competitive global small-satellite market.