India’s satellite navigation system, known as NavIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation), was born out of a difficult experience during the Kargil War in 1999. At the time, India needed accurate location data for military operations but was denied access to the US-owned GPS system. This led to a strong realization—India needed its own satellite navigation system that wouldn’t rely on foreign powers.
A System Born from Crisis
NavIC was developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and was meant to offer accurate position, navigation, and timing services within India and up to 1,500 km around its borders. The goal was simple but important: to reduce dependence on international systems and build a strong, independent navigation network.
The total investment in NavIC is estimated at $525 million. Despite this investment and over two decades of work, India’s own navigation system is still not fully functional. This has raised concerns, especially when other countries like the US, China, Russia, Japan, and the European Union already have fully operational satellite navigation networks.
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Ongoing Technical and Mission Failures
NavIC consists of 11 satellites, but only four of them are currently being used to offer proper navigation services. These include satellites IRNSS-1B, 1F, 1I, and 1J. Another satellite, 1C, is partially functional. However, two satellites failed to reach their intended orbits, and one has been completely decommissioned. The remaining satellites are only capable of broadcasting one-way messages, not full navigation support.
From the beginning, technical problems have slowed down NavIC’s development. At first, there were issues with atomic clocks that came from Europe. These clocks are critical for precise timing, which is necessary for accurate location data. After those early setbacks, India started producing its own atomic clocks. But the problems didn’t stop there. ISRO then faced ground equipment failures, and one satellite launch even failed because its heat shield didn’t detach properly, making the satellite useless.
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Earlier this year, India faced another major setback when NVS-02, the second navigation satellite in a newer series, failed to be placed into orbit. This was especially disappointing because the mission marked ISRO’s 100th satellite launch.
Despite these issues, NavIC continues to operate in a limited capacity. But with only a few functional satellites, it is far from delivering the full coverage and reliability that was originally planned. It still cannot match the global reach of systems like GPS or China’s BeiDou, which work almost everywhere on Earth.
Push for Integration and Market Adoption
Even though the navigation system is struggling in space, efforts are being made on the ground to make NavIC available to the public. In 2022, the Indian government directed all major mobile phone manufacturers to ensure that new devices would be compatible with NavIC. The aim was to make NavIC the default navigation service for Indian users.
Phone makers initially resisted this move. They argued that adding NavIC support would increase production costs. The deadline set by the government for this change was 1 January 2023, though it was not strictly enforced. Since then, many popular phone models released by companies like Apple, Xiaomi, Oppo, and others have begun including NavIC support.
Even though the service isn’t fully operational, newer smartphones are now being prepared for NavIC usage. This shows some progress in terms of public availability. For now, NavIC can only be accessed by phones within 1,500 km of India’s borders, but the idea is to eventually have more satellites and expand coverage.
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NavIC is designed not only for civilian use like driving directions or phone location but also for defence, emergency response, and disaster management. When fully operational, it will be able to offer accurate location data within 20 meters in all weather conditions using dual frequencies in L5 and S bands.
ISRO has plans to launch more satellites, including NVS-03, NVS-04, and NVS-05, to improve the performance of NavIC. Officials have confirmed that these launches are scheduled between late 2025 and 2026. Until then, the system will continue to operate in its limited form, with only part of its intended capacity in use.
