Archive · 12 Aug 2026
ISRO Building Gaganyaan Facility to Train Astronauts in India
India wants to send its own astronauts into space.
The space agency ISRO is building a new building called Gaganyatri Nivas where astronauts can train.
It will be built in Sriharikota, the place in India where rockets are launched.
The building will help astronauts get used to living and working like they will in space.
ISRO has asked companies to bid on a contract worth about 26 crore rupees to build it.
India's first space mission with people on board is planned for the year 2027.
In the past, Indian astronauts had to travel to Russia and the United States to train.
Soon, future astronauts can do all their training in India.
The new astronauts will not only be pilots but also teachers, doctors, and scientists.
This will help India build its own space station in the future.
ISRO will establish the Gaganyatri Nivas, a crew isolation and astronaut training facility, in Sriharikota, according to a senior ISRO official.
A tender worth Rs 26.02 crore was floated early this month for the planning, designing, and construction of the astronaut isolation facility.
The project uses EPC Mode-II, where ISRO provides architectural planning and design while the contractor handles construction and electrical work.
India's maiden Gaganyaan human spaceflight is targeted for 2027, with at least two Indian astronauts set to fly.
Future astronaut batches from fields like teaching, medicine, and science will train fully in India, unlike the first four astronaut designates who trained in Russia and the US.
- Who
- ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation), per a senior official quoted by ThePrint; Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier announced the creation of a broader astronaut pool.
- What
- Establishment of the Gaganyatri Nivas, a crew isolation and astronaut training facility in Sriharikota, for which a Rs 26.02 crore EPC Mode-II tender was floated.
- When
- The tender was floated early this month; the maiden Gaganyaan human spaceflight is targeted for 2027.
- Where
- Sriharikota, India (the report was filed from Bengaluru).
- Why
- To sustain India's human spaceflight program beyond the first Gaganyaan mission, enable full in-country training for a wider astronaut pool, and support the future Bharatiya Antariksh Station.
- Facility
- Gaganyatri Nivas (also referred to as Gaganyaan Nivas) — crew isolation and astronaut training centre
- Location
- Sriharikota
- Tender value
- Rs 26.02 crore
- Tender mode
- EPC Mode-II (ISRO provides design; contractor handles construction and electrical work)
- Maiden mission
- Gaganyaan human spaceflight targeted for 2027 with at least two Indian astronauts
- First astronaut designates
- Prasanth Nair, Shubhanshu Shukla, Angad Pratap and Ajit Krishnan (trained in Russia and the US)
- Future astronaut pool
- Teachers, medical professionals, scientists, including microbiologists, doctors and botanists
- Design inspiration
- NASA's Mission Simulation and Training Facility (MSTF)