The mission will accelerate QT led economic growth, nurture the ecosystem in the country and make India one of the leading nations in the development of Quantum Technologies & Applications (QTA) To scale up scientific and industrial R&D and create a vibrant & innovative ecosystem in Quantum Technology (QT), the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today approved the National Quantum Mission (NQM) at a total cost of Rs.6003.65 crore from 2023-24 to 2030-31.
The mission will accelerate QT led economic growth, nurture the ecosystem in the country and make India one of the leading nations in the development of Quantum Technologies & Applications (QTA).
Globally, Quantum Technology is opening up new frontiers in computing, communications, cyber security with widespread applications. And a lot of commercial applications would emerge from theoretical constructs which are being developed in this area.
The mission will help develop magnetometers with high sensitivity in atomic systems and Atomic Clocks for precision timing, communications and navigation. It will also support design and synthesis of quantum materials such as superconductors, novel semiconductor structures and topological materials for fabrication of quantum devices. Single photon sources/detectors, entangled photon sources will also be developed for quantum communications, sensing and metrological applications.
Four Thematic Hubs (T-Hubs) will be set up in top academic and National R&D institutes on the domains - Quantum Computing, Quantum Communication, Quantum Sensing & Metrology and Quantum Materials & Devices. The hubs which will focus on generation of new knowledge through basic and applied research as well as promote R&D in areas that are mandated to them.
NQM can take the technology development eco-system in the country to a globally competitive level. The mission would greatly benefit communication, health, financial and energy sectors as well as drug design, and space applications. It will provide a huge boost to National priorities like digital India, Make in India, Skill India and Stand-up India, Start-up India, Self-reliant India and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
As per the cabinet, the new mission targets developing intermediate-sca quantum computers with 50-1000 physical qubits in 8 years in various platforms like superconducting and photonic technology. Satellite based secure quantum communications between ground stations over a range of 2000 kilometres within India, long distance secure quantum communications with other countries, inter-city quantum key distribution over 2000 km as well as multi-node Quantum network with quantum memories are also some of the deliverables of the Mission says
In the 2020 budget, the government had announced a National Mission on Quantum Technologies & Applications (NM-QTA) with a total budget outlay of Rs 8000 Crore for a period of five years to be implemented by the Department of Science & Technology (DST).