INTRODUCTION
A sky-rocketing exploration as well as progress in the space arena has necessitated the formulation of an outer space treaty or space law in India. Space law is defined as a set of regulations that bring about a parity between the adverse effects as well as the positive aspects arising out of the activities of the mankind in the space sector which are governed by a set of agreements that can be both National as well as International in nature. A supervision on the activities of unethical dimensions, deleterious weapons, liability of nations in case of negligence, etc will be possible only when a proper space law comes in place in the country.
THE NEED FOR SPACE LAW
With the developed countries strongly consolidating their presence and increasing the competition in the outer space leading to a space war, February 2017 witnessed India creating a new milestone by launching 104 satellites into the orbit of the earth. The day dawned as India’s stake in the private international market upholding the cost efficiency, reliable launching space, and spiking return on investment being the core strengths. This guaranteed a possibility for commercialization and greater scientific discovery. There is certainly no reason for India to keep the space or development in abeyance especially when it is the developer of indigenous polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV).Being under high scrutiny in the purview of the prime minister’s office, a greater chunk of money for functioning comes from the government. The United States, Russia, and China, have already privatized their space markets by offering services that in return give exorbitant monetary gain. Though no systematic space legislations can be witnessed, The Antrix Corporation is an arm of the International Space Research Organisation (ISRO), which underscores India’s effort in establishing itself as one of the wizards of the space sector.Space law had its way in the world when the then president of The United States, Dwight D Eisenhower, introduced in the United Nations back in 1957 the concept of space laws. The matter focused on negotiations for disarmament. The term Space War can be used for today’s Era which takes back to 1990 with the populist International Law recognised every country to be bound by a responsibility to maintain peace which is very much applicable to the space laws. Things started buckling up when the world’s first artificial satellite was launched in 1957 by Russia, called as Sputnik.
TREATIES AND MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN NATIONS
The laws revolving around the Governance of the outer space spectrum can be dual in nature which is national and international. International level regulations are governed by the legislations like: The Outer Space Treaty 1967 which is a multilateral treaty affair of the member’s states and the impact on celestial bodies or Rescue Agreement On Rescue Of Astronauts And The Return On Objects Launched Into The Outer Space which elucidated the rights and obligations of the states concerning rescue of persons in the space sector.
India needs a space Law due to the lacuna in the treaties. The outer space Treaty emphasized that astronauts are to be rendered with all possible assistance. Albeit being this persuasive, elements like what and who is a space tourist is largely missing in terms of the meaning in these treaties. Article 7(12) of the outer space Treaty also explains the liability provision. Under the provisions in case of any violation of mutually accepted treaties by the states, the particular state will be held liable and not a private person, if any. It is also mandated that the state parties to the agreement have their own National agreement to facilitate contracts and collaborations in research and development under the liability convention. Though these legislations are largely in tandem with space positive competition, there is little in terms of punishment in the form of penal provisions. India will be able to acquire a greater commercial application of space technology at the transnational level through a good space law. Moreover, it will also understand the commercial application of space technology and the impact of it’s crash or crowding in the geostationary orbits. Hence, in furtherance to the adherence to Article 51(22) and Article 253(23) of the India Constitution which provide for implementation of international treaties, we need specific set of laws, like the Indian endeavor of INDPACE ( Indian national space promotion and authorization center) that is a good start and was the single window model agency for commercialization of space activities or procedure for implementation of space laws and SPACECOM.
CONCLUSION
It’s not to say that the Indian scenario totally lacks a proper administrative control over the space sector dealings. Activities are totally governed by the department of space established in the year 1972 before the coming of which India had the Department of Atomic Energy taking care of all the administrative activities in toto for the space sector. India never curated a space law for itself since it did not have a private sector that could invest in outer space plans. At present private sector has recognised the potential in investing in Indian space programs and exploration of space through manned and unmanned machines, which highlight the importance of a proper space law in the country. With the request to privatise the Indian space program that was put forth on May 2020, the future of Indian space law is definitely promising.