Hyderabad: ISRO will launch a US communication satellite on a commercial basis next month using its heavy-lift rocket LVM3, the space agency's chairman V. Narayanan said on Monday.

Delivering the keynote address at the 68th Annual Day celebrations of the Indian Railways Institute of Signal Engineering and Telecommunications (IRISET) here, Narayanan said India's space programme is progressing rapidly and will be on par with leading global spacefaring nations by 2040.

Speaking to reporters, he said the launch date for the US satellite is yet to be finalised. “It is not a collaboration mission. It is an American satellite that we are launching commercially using LVM3,” he clarified.

Narayanan said ISRO is currently managing 57 satellites in orbit, a number expected to triple in the next three years. As part of ongoing space sector reforms announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, five launch vehicle projects have been handed over to private industrial consortiums. “The first rocket is coming, and we are going to launch it,” he added.

ISRO is also advancing multiple major missions, including the Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme, new Earth observation satellites, and approved projects such as Chandrayaan-4 and Chandrayaan-5. Chandrayaan-4, aimed at bringing lunar samples back to Earth—a capability currently held only by the US, Russia and China—is targeted for 2028. Chandrayaan-5 will be executed jointly with Japan's space agency JAXA.

Narayanan said work is underway on India's home-grown space station, the Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS), with the first module approved by the government and planned for launch by 2028.

He also reiterated ISRO's long-term goal, set by the Prime Minister, to send an Indian astronaut to the Moon and bring them back safely by 2040.

On potential collaboration with Indian Railways, he said both organisations can work together to enhance passenger safety, communication and broadcast services.

“From starting in the bicycle era, India will become a leading spacefaring nation by 2040—matching any country in launches, satellites, applications and capabilities,” Narayanan said.