Over 100 Scientists Quit ISRO
ISRO is grappling with a significant wave of resignations, with between 100 and 120 scientists and technical personnel leaving the agency in recent months, according to multiple sources.
BENGALURU/NEW DELHI — The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is grappling with a significant wave of resignations, with between 100 and 120 scientists and technical personnel leaving the agency in recent months, according to multiple sources. The departures have affected critical national programmes, including the Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission, prompting the Department of Space (DoS) to issue strict new guidelines on exits.
A senior ISRO source told The Times of India that the scale of departures was substantial enough to warrant intervention. “Around 80 people have quit from URSC alone. At VSSC, at least 20 people have left. Overall, it could be roughly up to 120, conservatively. There could be more that are at the evaluation stage,” the source said.
Notable exits include Victor Joseph, Project Director of the LVM-3 launch vehicle from the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC); the SpaDeX project director from the U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC); and Aditya Rallapalli, a key contributor to Chandrayaan-3 simulations who led extensive mission validation work.
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In response, the Department of Space issued an internal memorandum on July 14, 2026, directing all ISRO centres to stop routinely approving resignations or Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) requests from Group-A scientific and technical personnel working on flagship missions such as Gaganyaan, Chandrayaan, and heavy-lift launch vehicles. All such cases must now be forwarded to the DoS headquarters, along with the centre director’s recommendations, for final approval.
This reverses a 2020 delegation of powers that had allowed centre heads to handle such requests independently. The move comes amid growing competition from India’s burgeoning private space sector, which is offering higher compensation, equity stakes, and greater operational flexibility.
ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan acknowledged the departures but downplayed their long-term impact. “Yes, a lot of people go, but that’s part of every organisation,” he told The Times of India. “The move isn’t only to retain, but also to ensure that important projects don’t suffer all of a sudden. But if someone is still going, someone else will take responsibility. We’re taking care of it.”
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The resignations have sparked debate on underlying issues, including pay disparities, workload pressures, and the pull of private industry. Analysts note that while ISRO’s overall attrition rate has historically hovered around 2-3%, the concentration of exits from mission-critical teams has raised concerns about project timelines.
The Department of Space has not officially confirmed the exact number of resignations. However, sources across multiple outlets, including The Hindu, India Today, and Deccan Herald, have corroborated the figure of 100–120 departures linked to key programmes.
ISRO is simultaneously ramping up recruitment, with plans to hire over 1,000 new personnel, even as it navigates this challenge to its experienced workforce.
This report is based on sources cited in The Times of India, The Hindu, and other verified news outlets as of July 16-17, 2026.
