With Sharp Eye On China, India's National Quantum Mission Is Catching Up

India is not quantum-ready but hopes to be soon. On the contrary, India's eastern adversary China is investing heavily in this futuristic technology, causing some angst in India.

It was announced in 2023 that India will invest Rs 6,000 crore in the National Quantum Mission. Today quantum computing is considered the Holy Grail of modern computing. Quantum computers use some of the unique properties of materials which speeds up the operations of computers to such an extent that no amount of traditional encryption remains secure.

"Can China break the cryptography that India employs, that is a point of worry?" Dr Ajai Chowdhry, Chairman of India's National Quantum Mission (NQM) and specialist in computers founder of HCL Technologies, and an advisor to India's Semi-conductor Mission said.

Dr Chowdhry avers China is around five years ahead of India in this game. Hence "there can be no doubt that India has to catch up", he said.

A new report "Landscape of Indian R&D in Quantum Technologies" produced by Bengaluru's Itihaasa Research and Digital, a company co-founded by former CEO of Infosys Kris Gopalakrishnan, said "Quantum technologies are likely to influence many aspects of human life. This makes quantum technologies strategic, and almost every developed country is investing in mastering these technologies. At present, worldwide investments in quantum technologies from the top 12 countries in this domain are estimated to be about $38.6 billion. But a close look reveals the huge gaps between India and China in quantum technology development. 

The report says that as of 2023 China invested $15 billion and, in comparison, India invested only $0.74 billion. This means our eastern adversary is investing 20 times more than us. 

About this disparity, Prof Ajay K Sood, Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, said, "China has an enormous number of publications in the area of quantum technology".

To highlight this fact the report says between 2000 and 2018, India published 1,711 research papers on quantum technologies. On the other hand, China published 12,110 papers - seven times more than India. 

On the contrary, India produced 82,110 graduates in quantum technology and relevant fields while China produced 57,693. The report said, "While the overall number of students in India is impressive, the elephant in the room is that ... [other than] a few top tier institutions there is a scarcity of faculty to train students in quantum technologies."

To exemplify how ahead China is - back in 2020, Chinese scientists established ultra-secure satellite-based quantum communication links using the Micius satellite system, bringing China closer to having "un-hackable" satellite communications. This made the world jittery as experts said the next wars would be fought in space or using space-based assets.

Indian space agency ISRO also has a program on developing quantum communication technology along with Bengaluru's Raman Research Institute but this is still being researched on ground-based systems.

A government statement from the Science Ministry said that quantum mechanics - the study of atoms and sub-atomic particles - has now advanced to such an extent that it has moved to the engineering domain and is leading to novel and varied applications. 

Researchers worldwide have utilised its principles to develop technologies such as LEDs, lasers, and ultra-precise atomic clocks in the Global Positioning System. 

Considerable attention is now being paid to controlling and manipulating quantum systems for Quantum Computing, Quantum Communications, and Quantum Sensing applications.

Prof Sood emphasised the global impact of quantum technology: "Quantum Technology is the new technology frontier, reached after decades of fundamental research leading to our ability to exploit the principles of superposition, entanglement, and measurement. It promises to lead to applications with immense potential for the global economy in areas ranging from medicine to the discovery of advanced materials, and from safe communication to extremely sensitive sensors."

Incidentally, the largest quantum computer being built in India will have 6 to 7 superconducting qubits and is being developed in Prof Rajamani Vijayaraghavan's laboratory in Mumbai's Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), in collaboration with Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS.), it remains a work in progress. Incidentally the lab already demonstrated a 3 qubit machine in 2020. Prof Vijayraghavan said, "With the launch of the National Quantum Mission, India is gearing up to develop not only quantum software but also build state-of-the-art quantum computing hardware for practical applications." 

The National Quantum Mission is housed in the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and underscoring DST's pivotal role in taking India's quantum mission forward, Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, DST, said, “India is one of the few countries making concerted efforts to leapfrog in quantum technologies and has reasons to be optimistic to become a leader in the area as it is still evolving. DST has taken up the challenge to build a world-class R&D capability in quantum technologies. Central to its efforts is the setting up of four hubs in Quantum Computing, Quantum Communication, Quantum Sensing & Metrology, and Quantum Materials & Devices.” Adding that currently 177 specific research proposals are being evaluated by DST for further funding.

India aims to have 100 qubit computers in the next five years.

The need to develop quantum technology is urgent, Prof Gopalakrishnan said, adding that the "industry needs to step up its investment in quantum technologies". "But there seems to be no demand from the industry," he said, adding that the good news is that at least the government has a mission mode program and it is supported by guaranteed funding.

The importance of quantum cryptography and encryption as an indispensable component of protecting critical institutions such as banks and electrical grids which will be required to implement quantum cryptography to improve security, said Dr Chowdhry, adding, "India needs to be quantum-ready to protect its security and national interests."