India has 129 trackable pieces of space debris from its satellite missions orbiting Earth, as of March 2026. Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh provided this information in a written reply to the Lok Sabha on March 18, 2026, highlighting India’s ongoing efforts to monitor and mitigate space debris to protect its space assets.
The space debris includes 23 defunct satellites in low-Earth orbit (Leo) and 26 in geostationary orbit (Geo).
Rocket bodies from the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro)’s PSLV, GSLV, and LVM3 rocket launches also contribute, with 40, 4, and 3 space debris pieces resulting from these vehicles, respectively.
As many as 33 debris pieces resulted from the breakup of the PSLV-C3 rocket body. Isro publishes the Indian Space Situational Assessment Report (ISSAR) annually to monitor such data.
WHAT INITIATIVES IS ISRO TAKING TO COUNTERACT SPACE DEBRIS?
The government is aligning India’s space debris mitigation policies with international guidelines set by the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) and the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS).
The Debris Free Space Mission (DFSM), launched in 2024, aims for zero debris creation by Indian space actors, both government and private, by 2030. Isro has incorporated fuel margin requirements during mission design to support this goal.
Isro collaborates with space agencies like Nasa, Esa (European Space Agency), and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) on space debris challenges. This cooperation includes joint workshops and training to enhance spaceflight safety. As an IADC member, Isro has contributed to updating space debris mitigation guidelines.
Research is progressing on technologies such as robotic arms and rendezvous operations, which are precursors to active debris removal. In 2025, India’s SpaDeX mission demonstrated autonomous rendezvous, docking, and undocking. The mission also tested a relocatable robotic arm and a robotic manipulator.
Defunct Leo satellites are managed by lowering their orbits at mission end to ensure faster atmospheric re-entry. Fuel allocation for de-orbiting is planned during mission design for upcoming satellites.
WHAT IS ISRO’S NETRA PROJECT?
The Netra project, with a sanctioned budget of Rs 509.01 crore, had incurred Rs 67.77 crore in expenditure by February 2026. Netra’s control centre manages collision avoidance recommendations, tracks atmospheric re-entries, and processes radar data from the Multi-object Tracking Radar (MOTR) at Sriharikota.
Since 2022, the Indian Space Situational Awareness and Management Centre (IS4OM) coordinates long-term space sustainability and debris mitigation. IS4OM supports Indian startups through the IN-Space programme to implement debris management measures.
