Following mixed fortunes with its two missions in 2026, the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is set to return to the launch pad on October 30 to launch a navigation satellite, NVS-03, on board the GSLV Mk II, which delivered this year’s only successful mission in September.

Isro Chairman Dr V Narayanan indicated on Thursday that the NVS-03 launch, which had been slotted tentatively between October 15 and 20, was cleared for a launch attempt on October 30 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota.

Since the second successive failure of Isro’s workhorse PSLV rocket on January 4, 2026, the space agency has adopted a cautious approach to launches—to understand and rectify the anomalies that caused the PSLV launch failures on May 18, 2025 and January 12, 2026.

The cautious approach on all launches irrespective of the launch vehicle has also meant delays in the timelines for the realisation of Gaganyaan , the ambitious human space flight programme, with the schedule for the proposed first test…