Mr. Chairman,

At the outset, India thanks the President of the General Assembly for his illuminating address and welcomes the Report of the Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space presented by chair of the committee Mr David Kendall of Canada.  The Indian delegation places great importance on the work of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) and expresses its satisfaction over the deliberations of 60th session of UNCOPUOS and the work carried out by the Scientific, Technical and Legal sub-committees.

It is a matter of satisfaction that we are today observing the 50th Anniversary of the Treaty on the Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies.  Given the exponential growth of space technology and activities, the importance of the Treaty and the need to enhance its effectiveness for the future needs no emphasis. 

Transitioning to a globally understood and transparent legal framework to encompass the complexity of today's interaction with space is a necessity. India is in agreement that States should initiate national legislation relevant to the peaceful uses of outer space and these legislations should be closely aligned as far as possible with international treaties.  India is currently engaged in the process of formulating a national space legislation for the country.  We appreciate the usefulness of the 10th UN Workshop on Space Law organised by the Office of Outer Space Affairs in Vienna in September 2016. Recognizing the importance of capacity building in international space law, India has been supporting Capacity Building in Space law among Indian law students. 

Mr. Chairman,

The space sector remains one of the most promising and effective tools in realizing the 2030 Agenda. Hence, the Indian space programme continues to integrate advances in space technology and applications with the national developmental goals. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is currently working with 60 Ministries and Departments of Government of India, on promoting space technology tools and application for good governance and national development. India successfully launched its Resourcesat-2A satellite for earth observation into Sun synchronous orbit by PSLV C-36 in December 2016.  This satellite will add to natural resource management capabilities.

India will be hosting the 38th Asian Conference of Remote Sensing with the theme 'Space Applications: Touching Human Lives' at New Delhi October 23-25, 2017.

We also agree with the need for and support the development of guidelines for the long term sustainability of outer space. The crucial role of space data and technology in improving the efficiency of  development programmes is uncontestable.  India also appreciates UN Space Based Information and Disaster Management and Emergency Response (SPIDER) initiative and considers it the right step in implementation of the Sendai Framework and the 2030 Agenda.  

On May 5, 2017, India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle, GSLV-F09 launched the South Asia Satellite into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).  This satellite carries Ku band transponders to provide a variety of communication services over the South Asian region. With this launch, South Asian nations including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka, can utilize broadcast services like direct TV, tele-medicine, and augment their banking networks. The ground terminals for demonstration have been already delivered to these nations and installations are in progress.  As part of this, a one-month training capsule on satellite communication applications has been provided to Bhutanese officials at the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) facilities.

Mr. Chairman,

India has always recognised the principle of space as a common heritage of all mankind. The focus of the India space program remains on using space for the benefit of mankind within and outside its geographical boundaries. India's space programme has increasingly become a cost-effective platform available for all willing partners.  

In February 2017, India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C37, launched Cartostat-2 series satellite for earth observation along with 103 co-passenger satellites into polar Sun Synchronous Orbit.  The co-passenger satellites comprised of 101 nano satellites, one each from Kazakhstan, Israel, The Netherlands, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and 96 from United States of America (USA), as well as two Nano satellites from India. 

The second Satellite of the Cartostat-2 Series Satellites along with 30 co-passenger satellites was launched by PSLV C378 on June 23, 2017. The co-passenger satellites load in this launch include one Indian Academic Institute satellite and 29 satellites from USA, United Kingdom, Belgium, Italy, Austria, Chile, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia.

Mr. Chairman, 

Highlighting some of significant developments in the last year. 

The country's Mars Orbiter Mission spacecraft has successfully completed three years in the Martian Orbit, providing invaluable data to scientific community on the Martian surface and atmosphere from five scientific instruments. The first year science data of this mission has been released to the global scientific community.  More than 200 GB of data has already been downloaded by more than 1100 registered users. 

The Indian Multi-wavelength Space Astronomy observatory, AstroSat completes two years in Orbit in September 2017. The observatory will be open to national and international astronomy community for submitting proposals for observation from October 2017.  Till now, around 400 celestial sources of various categories have been observed by this satellite. 

India' 2nd lunar mission 'Chandrayaan-2', which will include an orbiter, lander and a rover is expected to be launched in 2018.

Mr. Chairman,

India places considerable importance on International Cooperation for peaceful uses of outer space. ISRO continues to share its facilities and expertise in the application of space science and technology through the United Nations (UN) affiliated Centre for Space Science and Technology Education in Asia and the Pacific (CSSTEAP) at Dehradun.  As of now, there are about 1600 beneficiaries from 52 countries.  

Currently, formal instruments of cooperation are in place with 42 countries and four international organizations.  In the last one year, 27 cooperative documents with 10 countries are signed.  Through these latest documents, space cooperation with Armenia, Bangladesh, Netherlands and Portugal were formally established; and the scope of cooperation with Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, Russia and USA enhanced.

India is also a regular participant in the Asia Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF), a regional cooperative mechanism for the Asia Pacific region.  India will be hosting the 24th session of APRSAF in the city of Bangalore in November 2017.  The theme of this APRSAF session is 'Space Technology for Enhanced Governance and Development'. We invite active participation from member states.

In conclusion, we welcome the Joint panel discussions last week and support the Committee in all its endeavors towards ensuring the long term sustainability of outer space activities for the benefit of entire humanity.

Thank you Mr. Chairman.