NITI Aayog’s Quantum tech roadmap, Telangana Quantum Strategy unveiled

Quantum technologies still in their formative stages globally present India with a rare opportunity to shape the trajectory of a foundational technology, according to NITI Aayog.

Unlike previous technological waves, where the country had to play catch-up, India can position itself as a global leader from the outset, the policy think-tank of the government of India said in a roadmap for transforming the country into a leading quantum-powered economy.

Realising the potential, however, calls for bold, coordinated and immediate action by way of accelerating scientific research, fostering rapid technology development, scaling up workforce preparation and enabling commercialisation at pace and scale, per the NITI Aayog’s Frontier Tech Hub document, which was launched on Thursday.

Telangana government’s Telangana Quantum Strategy (TQS) was also unveiled at the programme, at IIIT Hyderabad. Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, IT and Industries Minister D. Sridhar Babu, NITI Aayog CEO B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, member V.K. Saraswat and distinguished Fellow Debjani Ghosh participated.

Future leader

The Deputy Chief Minister said that Hyderabad will emerge as future leader in quantum economy on the back of its abundant resources such as strong infrastructure and digital skills. NITI Aayog’s roadmap is aligned with Telangana Rising 2047 vision of the State to become a $3 trillion economy by 2047, he said.

With TQS, Telangana has become the first State in the country to have a dedicated roadmap for quantum technology. It aims to achieve integrated and future-focused goals in research, skills development, education, infrastructure, and cybersecurity. Telangana is committed to build India’s most advanced quantum innovation ecosystem, Mr. Vikramarka Mallu said.

Mr. Sridhar Babu said quantum technology held the potential to be as transformative in the present century as electricity and the internet were in earlier eras. The State government has adopted a focused and long-term vision to ensure Telangana emerged as a global leader in quantum technologies, alongside Artificial Intelligence and advanced digital systems.

The government will establish a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Quantum Technologies to serve as a national benchmark for research, testing, and high-end skills development. A Fund of Funds to support deep-tech startups and emerging technology enterprises will be launched from the next financial year, the IT minister said.

Mr. Subrahmanyam said, “The coming five years will decide whether India becomes a global supplier of quantum technologies — or a consumer dependent on others. We must combine our unmatched talent base, engineering depth, and digital public infrastructure to build a quantum-powered India. By working in partnership and acting with urgency, we can reduce technology dependencies and build globally trusted platforms that reflect India’s innovation strengths.”

Calling for coordinated national action, NITI Aayog document said the key priorities are to expand the Quantum workforce; catalyse industry engagement and investment; accelerate lab-to-market transition; take steps to substantially grow quality and quantity of fundamental scientific research; make Indian domicile attractive for Indian startups; and engage actively with global standards bodies and take leadership in international standard setting related to quantum technologies to ensure Indian products have access to global markets. It also called for ensuring strong trade relations and ease of technology export and import, especially in quantum related technology areas.