<p class="title">The government has finalised the broad contours of a new defence space agency which will develop capabilities to protect India's interests in outer space and deal with threats of space wars, officials sources said Tuesday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The agency is being tasked with developing a range of platforms and co-orbital weapons to protect Indian assets in space and to have deterrence, they said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The sources said the government is also planning to set up a defence space research organisation to carry out research and development relating to military dimension of use of outer space.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The move to set up the defence space agency comes over two months after the government carried out an Anti-Satellite (A-SAT) test by shooting down a live satellite.</p>.<p class="bodytext">With the A-SAT test, India joined a select group of countries to have capability to shoot down a satellite.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"The Defence Space Agency will evolve strategy to protect India's interests in outer space including dealing with threat of space wars," said a senior military official.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The setting up of the defence space agency was discussed at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security of the previous government, the sources said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The need for developing counterspace capability was discussed threadbare at a meeting of Defence Planning Committee (DPC) chaired by National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval in April.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The DPC is working on "comprehensive" planning for the defence forces besides focusing on military doctrines to deal with emerging security challenges.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A joint doctrine developed by the Army, Air Force and the Navy had also strongly recommended setting up of a Defence Space Agency along with a 'Defence Cyber Agency'. </p>
<p class="title">The government has finalised the broad contours of a new defence space agency which will develop capabilities to protect India's interests in outer space and deal with threats of space wars, officials sources said Tuesday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The agency is being tasked with developing a range of platforms and co-orbital weapons to protect Indian assets in space and to have deterrence, they said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The sources said the government is also planning to set up a defence space research organisation to carry out research and development relating to military dimension of use of outer space.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The move to set up the defence space agency comes over two months after the government carried out an Anti-Satellite (A-SAT) test by shooting down a live satellite.</p>.<p class="bodytext">With the A-SAT test, India joined a select group of countries to have capability to shoot down a satellite.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"The Defence Space Agency will evolve strategy to protect India's interests in outer space including dealing with threat of space wars," said a senior military official.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The setting up of the defence space agency was discussed at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security of the previous government, the sources said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The need for developing counterspace capability was discussed threadbare at a meeting of Defence Planning Committee (DPC) chaired by National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval in April.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The DPC is working on "comprehensive" planning for the defence forces besides focusing on military doctrines to deal with emerging security challenges.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A joint doctrine developed by the Army, Air Force and the Navy had also strongly recommended setting up of a Defence Space Agency along with a 'Defence Cyber Agency'. </p>