Union Minister of State (Independent Charge, IC) Dr. Jitendra Singh, Ministry of Science and Technology (MoS&T), along with Andhra Pradesh (AP) Chief Minister (CM) Nara (N.) Chandrababu Naidu, laid the foundation of India’s first Quantum Valley, Amaravati Quantum Valley (AQV), at Uddandarayunipalem village in Thullur mandal of Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh.
- Supported by the National Quantum Mission (NQM), this new project aims to become a global hub for emerging technologies such as quantum computing and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
- The Andhra Pradesh government, in collaboration with major companies such as International Business Machines (IBM), Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T), C-DOT (Centre for Development of Telematics), C-DAC (Centre for Development of Advanced Computing), and major quantum startups, has established India’s first 133-qubit quantum computer center in Amaravati.
- The new facility will primarily focus on Research and Development (R&D), innovation, manufacturing, and skill development in areas such as quantum computing, AI, cybersecurity, healthcare, defense, and finance.
- Project Timeline: The government plans that the Quantum Valley complex will be completed by August, 2026 and the quantum computer will be installed by December, 2026.
IBM and TCS Quantum Cloud Services launched
- During the event, the AQV logo was launched along with the launch of IBM and TCS Quantum Cloud Services.
- An IBM-TCS Quantum Innovation Center was also established. During the event, the Washington Institute for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Entrepreneurship and Research (WISER) Quantum Talent Hub was launched, under which a Centre of Excellence (CoE) will train 3.5 million students in quantum computing by 2035.
- The event included the unveiling of the foundation plaque, launch of the Amaravati Quantum Valley logo, launch of IBM and TCS Quantum Cloud Services, establishment of the IBM-TCS Quantum Innovation Center, announcement of the Quantum Talent Hub, a Quantum Reference Facility by SRM University, a Quantum-Safe Applications Initiative, and exchange of several MoUs with nine industry partners, demonstrating a coordinated industry-academia-government partnership.
About the National Quantum Mission
- The National Quantum Mission (NQM) was officially approved by the Government of India on 19 April, 2023. The duration of the National Quantum Mission will be from 2023-24 to 2030-31 and its total budget is ₹6003.65 crore.
- Through this mission, an intermediate-scale quantum computer with a capacity of 50-1000 physical qubits will be developed over eight years on various platforms such as superconducting and photonic technologies.
- Satellite-based secure quantum communication between ground stations within 2000 kilometers within India, long-distance secure quantum communication with other countries, intercity ‘quantum key’ distribution over a range of more than 2000 kilometers, and multi-node quantum networks equipped with quantum memory are other key aspects of this mission.
- Under this, single photon sources/detectors and entangled photon sources will also be developed for quantum communication, sensing, and meteorological applications.
- The mission will work on four main themes (T-Hubs), which are being established at IISc Bengaluru, IIT Madras, IIT Bombay, and IIT Delhi.
