The Indian space research organisation (ISRO) would soon set up a third rocket launchpad in the country, officials said Sunday.

The launchpad would be set up in the coastal hamlet of Kulashekhrapattinam in the Thoothukudi district, about 648 km south of Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu.

According to officials, ISRO has begun preparatory works for setting up the third rocket launchpad.

"The district administration has appointed a special official along with eight more senior officials to speed up the process of land acquisition for the center," an official said.

Currently, India has two launch pads at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

The demand for additional launch pads has arisen as a result of the increase in the number of satellite launches from India, both for domestic and international customers.