India’s Quantum dreams: The impact of tech on economy could be significant

Source- The post is based on the article “India’s Quantum dreams: The impact of tech on economy could be significant” published in the “Business Standard” on 15th May 2023.

Syllabus: GS3- Awareness in the field of IT and computers

News– National Quantum Mission was approved by the Union Cabinet in April, with a total outlay of ~6,003 crore over the next six years. The investments will be directed towards research and development and creating an innovative ecosystem in quantum technology.

What is the progress of the country in the field of quantum technology?

As per Nasscom, numerous players are actively engaged in this field. It includes 10-15 government agencies, 20-30 service providers, 15-20 start-ups, and 40-50 academic institutions.

About 92% of 100 projects initiated in India as of February 2022 are government-sponsored. The projects are operated by remote access to quantum computers through cloud platforms provided by companies like IBM, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon.

IBM was the first company to make an actual quantum computer available on the cloud in 2016. IBM has been playing a pivotal role in India’s quantum computing journey.

Since 2021, IBM has prioritised access to quantum computing to boost quantum programming skills in India. By installing Qiskit and some Application Programming Interfaces, anyone can start programming.

BosonQ Psi became the first start-up from India to join the IBM Quantum Network.

What is the potential of quantum technology for India?

India may achieve quantum advantage where quantum computers outperform classical supercomputers within the next year or two.

This can solve many problems at the scale of India’s population. It can identify fraudulent transactions from billions of digital transactions.

The impact of quantum technologies on India’s economy could be significant. Nasscom’s study suggests that widespread adoption of quantum technology across industries could contribute $280-310 billion to the Indian economy by 2030.

The technology may reach critical maturity by 2026–2027. It can lead to an increase in enterprise adoption.

What can be various potential uses of quantum technology?

Quantum technology can solve crucial problems in finance, chemistry, life sciences, and

logistics. It is already helping enterprises.

Quantum computing can provide better solutions to complex optimization problems. It can explore problems in chemistry and pharma related to protein folding and drug design.

The next-generation computing methods can unlock new scientific possibilities in areas like computational chemistry for new materials and energy solutions to address climate change.

Quantum computing can have application in currency arbitrage, credit scoring and portfolio optimisation for a client in the financial services domain.

What is the way forward for India in the field of quantum technology?

Quantum computing is still in its early stages globally, but India cannot afford to ignore its role in it.

Countries across the world are going to have quantum encryption. India cannot afford to be without it. India will have to develop them indigenously.

A quantum industry is going to develop all over the world. It is important to have a partnership with that industry.