[12][13][14][15] If completed successfully, India will become the fourth nation to conduct independent human spaceflight after the Soviet Union/Russia, United States, and China.

As per memorandum of understanding (MoU), Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) will provide support for Human Space Mission with critical human-centric systems and technologies like space-grade food, crew healthcare, radiation measurement and protection, parachutes for the safe recovery of the crew module, fire suppression systems, etc.

[22][23] A prototype called 'Advanced Crew Escape Suit' weighing 13 kg and built by Sure Safety (India) Private Limited has been tested and performance verified.

[28] Having shown success in all preliminary tests,[29] the decisive push for the creation of the Human Spaceflight Programme took place in 2017,[30] and it was accepted and formally announced by the Prime Minister on August 15, 2018.

[32] However, on June 11, 2020, it was announced that the overall schedule for the Gaganyaan launches had been postponed due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in India, in turn revising the timetable for the HSP.

[5] As per ISRO, the initial review process is complete for food, potable water, emergency first aid kits, and health monitoring systems for the Gaganyaan mission until March 16, 2021.

[citation needed] ISRO and the CNES joint working group on the Human Spaceflight Programme are collaborating on space medicine for Gaganyaan project.

Before the flight of the Gaganyaan module, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla would fly on the Axiom-4 Mission to the International Space Station.

[41] On October 7, 2016, Vikram Sarabhai Space Center Director K. Sivan stated that ISRO was gearing up to conduct a critical 'crew bailout test' called the ISRO Pad Abort Test to see how fast and effectively the crew module could be released safely in the event of an emergency.

[50][51][52] As of January 2020, the crew module was due to undergo testing in the wind tunnel facility of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) at the National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL).

[28] The first uncrewed flight will involve the launch of a 5,000 kg (11,000 lb) module which, after orbiting will re-enter the atmosphere and decelerate at an altitude of 7 km (4.3 mi) before splashing down.

[60] Systems for crew ingress and egress, an access platform, recovery setup for emergencies during the flight’s ascent phase, module preparation facility for assembly and testing will be built.

Theoretical parameters for human rating were expected to be achieved by August or September 2020 to be followed by simulations and three test launches.

[65][needs update] ISRO has successfully conducted a pad abort test to validate its launch escape system for fast and effective crew extraction in the event of an emergency.

In the spring of 2009, a full-scale mock-up of the crew capsule was built and delivered to Satish Dhawan Space Centre for astronaut training.

[71][72] ISRO signed a memorandum of understanding in 2009 with the Indian Air Force's Institute of Aerospace Medicine (IAM) to conduct preliminary research on the psychological and physiological needs of the crew and the development of training facilities.

[73][74] IAM played a key role in determining astronaut training, the design of the crew capsule as per the anthropometric dimensions of the Indian population and a number of control and environmental systems as per psychological and physiological needs.

[76] In January 2019, ISRO Chairman K. Sivan announced the creation of India's Human Space Flight Centre in Bengaluru for training astronauts.

[78] An astronaut training facility will be established on a proposed 140 acres (0.57 km2) site near Kempegowda International Airport in Devanahalli, Karnataka.

[89][90][91] ISRO has also proposed a₹2,700 crore (US$310 million) plan to establish an astronaut training centre at Challakere in Chitradurga district.

[93] On the 91st Indian Air Force Day in 2023, the IAF released a video on Twitter, sharing a glimpse of the astronauts (without revealing their faces) training for the Gaganyaan mission.

Angad Pratap, the Gaganyaan Group Captain, has stated that priority will be given to research work that will address the difficulties that ISRO faces in its technical endeavors.

The team highlighted the importance for the astronaut-designates' pockets to fit perfectly and the uniform must operate well in order to support their motions.

Special care has to be taken in the packaging, and the food items should be of limited weight, but at the same time should be high in nutritional quality.

Instead, it will fly humanoid robots for a better understanding of what weightlessness and radiation do to the human body during long durations in space.

[113] On 7 November 2018, ISRO released an Announcement of Opportunity seeking proposals from the Indian science community for microgravity experiments that could be carried out during the first two robotic flights of Gaganyaan.

All the proposed internal and external experimental payloads will undergo thermal, vacuum and radiation tests under required temperature and pressure conditions.

On 13 June 2019, ISRO Chief K. Sivan announced the plan, saying that India's space station will be deployed 5–7 years after the completion of the Gaganyaan programme.

[117][118][119][120] ISRO is working to develop spacecraft docking and berthing technology, with initial funding of ₹10 crore cleared in 2017.