Dear Patrons,

"Tech women in space- Paving the way for the Next Gen" a break-through session held by SIA-India at the World Space Week on 5th October 2021 was a resounding success. World Space Week is conducted by UN as an annual event with participation from over 96 countries. This year the theme was 'Women in Space'.

The all women panel was moderated by Ms Aarti Holla-Maini, Secretary General-ESOA. The virtual discussion between eminent speakers in the Space Industry in India and Europe was well attended by more than 150 participants from India, USA, UK, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Lithuania. The panelists deliberated upon the way women are taking their rightful place in empowering the private space industry and the way forward for the youngsters and students interested in the space sciences domain.

India needs more celebration of women role models in these areas to portray this as a natural space for women and not an exception. The panelists at the discussion are the perfect examples of excellence, hard work and ambition. They have reached the peak of their careers and are leading from the front.

The Hon'ble Prime Minister in a recent address to industry leaders talked about woman workforce in the space ecosystem and the importance of having women coming to the forefront of the Space ecosystem. The women led team of the ISRO project Mangalyan [Mission Orbital Mission] is an example to be followed.

Highlights of the discussion during the SIA-India panel at 'World Space Week - "Women in Space" were:

• India is taken very seriously on the global Space stage and possess immense talent but has a long way to go in terms of promoting women in leadership positions.
• In ISRO, despite having several successful women heading rocket programs and satellite program, not single women in last 5 decades have headed any major ISRO centers or become the chairperson of ISRO. This needs to change.
• This generation has the capacity and capability to raise the bar even higher and think beyond 5 trillion economy. They need to inculcate the spirit of innovation and motivate the youngsters to join the space ecosystem.
• Students are the main element for consideration under capacity building and nurturing and enabling them should be one of the main focuses of the industry academia and government.
• India has a huge talent bank in science, technology, engineering and mathematics however, much work remains to be done to bring about gender equality and developing soft skills.
• India needs to change its examination centric approach to have an effective education system to attract innovative minds.

The all-women panel had Ms. Aarti Holla Maini, Secretary General, ESOA, as the moderator. The speakers were: Dr. Ms. VR Lalithambika, Head of Human Space Program, ISRO, Dr. Susmita Mohanty, Spaceship Designer and CEO, Earth2Orbit, Ms. Neelu Khatri, SVP Govt Affairs, Akasa Air, and Ms. Jenna Tiwana, Aerospace Engineer, Global Team-SpaceTide.

The first meeting of the Committee on Space Infrastructure was held on Tuesday, September 28, 2021. The main objective of the committee is to deliberate, plan and execute actions for "Creating an ecosystem for all stakeholders of space sector for design development, manufacturing, industrial collaboration and role of Space parks, Large Enterprises and ancillary industries."