Hyderabad-based startup, Dhruva Space has secured a grant of ₹105 crore under the Government of India’s Research, Development and Innovation Fund (RDIF) to support its satellite manufacturing initiative, Project Garud.
The startup stated that the funding will be utilised to develop a next-generation 500 kg-class satellite platform designed for large-scale constellation deployments. The grant was formally announced on May 13, 2026, during the inaugural Enterprise Technology Evaluation agreement signing ceremony in New Delhi, which also marked the first fund disbursement under the government’s ₹1 lakh crore Research, Development and Innovation Scheme.
The event was attended by Jitendra Singh, Ajay Kumar Sood, along with senior government officials. Dhruva Space is among the first group of companies to receive support under the RDIF initiative, reflecting growing institutional backing for India’s private space ecosystem.
Project Garud aims to address a major challenge within the global satellite industry, where spacecraft are traditionally custom-built for individual missions, often leading to long development cycles and limited scalability. The programme focuses on creating a standardised and production-ready satellite platform within the 300 to 500 kg category that can be manufactured repeatedly and at scale.
The platform is being developed using a flat-pack architecture that enables multiple satellites to be efficiently stacked inside launch vehicles. This approach is expected to reduce system integration timelines, improve deployment efficiency, and support the growing demand for constellation-scale satellite deployments rather than standalone spacecraft missions.
According to the company, the platform is being designed for a wide range of applications, including telecommunications, earth observation, national security, and emerging data-driven use cases. Beyond satellite development, the initiative also includes building the manufacturing infrastructure, industrial tooling, and scalable production systems required for high-volume satellite manufacturing.
Dhruva Space’s long-term roadmap targets a production capability of up to two satellites per day, translating to an annual manufacturing capacity of approximately 500 to 600 satellites across multiple mission configurations. The development aligns with the broader global shift towards constellation-based satellite networks and increasing demand for scalable spacecraft manufacturing solutions.
Abhay Egoor said, “Project Garud represents the industrialisation of satellite manufacturing from India. The global market is rapidly moving toward constellation-scale deployments, but the supply side for reliable, production-ready spacecraft platforms remains constrained. Through RDIF, Dhruva Space is building an indigenous satellite platform and manufacturing ecosystem capable of supporting high-volume deployment requirements across communications, intelligence, and strategic applications.”
“Our objectives are to build satellites for our own missions, and to position Dhruva Space as a globally competitive spacecraft OEM and subsystem supplier. The RDI programme strengthens India’s Space technology stack across Platform Architecture, Avionics, Power systems, and scalable manufacturing capabilities. Project Garud also speaks of our long-term vision toward enabling spacecraft solutions for higher orbital regimes, including MEO and GEO-class missions in the future,” he added.
The funding reflects the increasing importance of India’s private spacetech ecosystem as the country accelerates investments in advanced manufacturing, aerospace innovation, and strategic space infrastructure. With global demand for satellite constellations continuing to rise, startups focused on scalable spacecraft production and indigenous technology development are expected to play a larger role in shaping the future of the global space economy.
