Chennai, Feb. 1 -- The Indian Space Association (ISpA) welcomed the Union Budget and said the announcement of the National Geospatial Mission showed the growing commitment of the government to use the downstream capabilities of the space tech sector.

Director General Lt. Gen. AK Bhatt said "We welcome the announcement in the Union Budget to facilitate the modernization of land records, urban planning, and design of infrastructure projects under this crucial mission it is good to see how the industry and the government have realized the importance of these emerging technologies."

Even former ISRO Chairman S. Somanath last year stressed the need to focus on developing downstream capabilities to generate demand and attract investments...