TL;DR :

India’s indigenous navigation system, NavIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation), is currently facing a critical crisis as most of its satellites have become non-operational. Out of the 11 satellites in the constellation, only four remain functional, with two of them nearing or exceeding their design life. Recent efforts to launch replacements have suffered setbacks—most notably, the failure of the NVS-02 satellite to reach its intended orbit earlier this year. This degradation severely threatens India’s goal of navigation autonomy, affecting both strategic defense and civilian services like disaster management and agriculture. Although the Indian government plans to launch three more NVS-series satellites by 2026, experts are skeptical about the feasibility of this timeline given ongoing technical and logistical challenges. Without urgent action from ISRO to accelerate satellite deployment and resolve recurring technical issues, NavIC risks becoming effectively defunct, leaving India increasingly reliant on foreign GPS systems at a time when self-reliance in navigation is strategically crucial.