Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS)

The Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS) is India’s planned space station. ISRO is developing it as a follow-on to the Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme. Once operational, it will let Indian astronauts live and work in orbit for extended periods, not just fly a short mission and return.

mcqquestion.com

Science and Technology · SciTech0057

Bharatiya Antariksh Station

India’s planned space station, built on Gaganyaan’s technology

5 modules

Overall BAS configuration finalised by ISRO

BAS-01

First module approved by the government

2035

Target year for full operationalisation

₹20,193 Cr

Cabinet-approved budget, 8 missions, Sep 2024

India’s fourth space station power

Only Russia/USSR, the USA, and China have operated their own space station. BAS, built on Gaganyaan’s crew technology, would make India the fourth.

mcqquestion.com · Science and Technology ⬇ Download as image

Must Know

• The Bharatiya Antariksh Station, or BAS, is India’s planned space station, being built by ISRO.
• ISRO has worked out BAS’s overall configuration. It will have five modules once complete.
• The Union government has approved the first module, called BAS-01.
• Overall system engineering of the BAS-01 module, and technology development for its various subsystems, is progressing across ISRO centres.
• Full operationalisation of BAS, with all five modules in place, is targeted by 2035.
• BAS builds directly on Gaganyaan’s human-rating technology. See SciTech0056 — Gaganyaan Mission for the crewed-flight programme BAS grows out of.

Good to Know

• A space station is a large spacecraft that stays in orbit long-term. Astronauts can live and work aboard it for weeks or months, unlike a short single-flight mission.
• BAS follows the same broad model as other stations, such as the International Space Station. But it will be India’s own, independently built and operated facility.
• The budget for BAS is bundled with Gaganyaan’s. In September 2024, the Union Cabinet approved ₹20,193 crore for eight missions covering both programmes.
• BAS-01, the first module, needs its own systems engineering work. This covers structural design, subsystem integration, and technology development.
• That BAS-01 work is being carried out across multiple ISRO centres and units.
• ISRO plans to launch and assemble the remaining four modules in stages, after BAS-01, to reach the full five-module station by 2035.
• BAS will depend on the same crew and cargo transport systems developed for Gaganyaan. This includes the Human Rated Launch Vehicle (HLVM3) and the Crew Escape System.

Test Yourself

Please wait…

1. How many modules will the complete Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS) have, per ISRO’s finalised configuration?

Three

Five

Seven

Two

 Loading…

 

Great to Know

• BAS marks a shift in India’s space ambitions. Earlier missions focused on single flights; BAS aims for a sustained, long-duration human presence in orbit.
• A permanent station lets ISRO run extended microgravity research, in fields like biology, materials science, and medicine, that a short mission cannot support.
• Only three other space powers have operated a space station of their own: the Soviet Union/Russia, the United States, and China. BAS would make India the fourth.
• The modular design lets ISRO launch BAS in stages, module by module, rather than needing one very large single launch.
• Building BAS also strengthens India’s long-term case for participating in, or contributing technology to, future international space station programmes.

Current Affairs

• On 5 August 2026, the Minister of State in the Department of Space gave a written Lok Sabha reply. It confirmed ISRO has finalised BAS’s five-module configuration, and that the government has approved BAS-01, the first module. (Source: PIB, Lok Sabha reply, 5 Aug 2026)
• The same reply confirmed BAS’s 2035 operationalisation target, and that BAS-01’s systems engineering and subsystem technology development is progressing across ISRO centres and units. (Source: PIB, Lok Sabha reply, 5 Aug 2026)
• The reply also confirmed the shared ₹20,193 crore, eight-mission budget, approved by the Union Cabinet in September 2024, covering both Gaganyaan and early BAS missions. (Source: PIB, Lok Sabha reply, 5 Aug 2026)

BAS sits inside India’s wider space effort — see SciTech0007 — India’s Space Programme for the full picture, and SciTech0056 — Gaganyaan Mission for the human-spaceflight programme BAS is built on.