A total of 42 Indian satellites operational in orbit are being used for communication, meteorological and earth observations, navigation and space science purposes, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday.
In a written reply, Minister of State (Independent Charge) Atomic Energy and Space, Jitendra Singh said: “At present, there are 42 Indian satellites operational in orbit. During 2016-17, the total revenue accrued through leasing of INSAT/ GSAT transponders is Rs.746.68 crore.”
“Out of the 42 satellites, 15 satellites are used for communication, 4 for meteorological observations, 14 for earth observations, 7 for navigation and 2 for space science purposes,” he added.
The minister further informed that the annual income from sale of remote sensing satellite data is Rs. 25.17 crores.
The data and value added services derived from earth observation, meteorological, communication and navigation satellites are used to support various applications like resource monitoring, weather forecasting, disaster management, location based services, including societal applications, he said.
“The expenses to realize and launching of these satellites are less than those of other countries,” Singh said.