Explained: IN-SPACe Pact To Develop Indigenous Satellite QKD Products

In order to create domestic satellite QKD (quantum key distribution) products, Bengaluru-based deep tech startup QNu Labs and the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) in Ahmedabad signed a contract on Tuesday.

According to a press release from IN-SPACe, the results of the collaboration will ensure that India takes the lead in future global quantum communication networks.

What is IN-SPACe?

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The Union Government approved IN-SPACe as an independent nodal agency, and the Department of Space will be in charge of it. This group will serve as a liaison between India's private space industry and ISRO.

Private parties will be permitted to carry out space activities and utilise the resources of the Department of Space (DoS) for launch manifests under the auspices of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre.

The Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) property and infrastructure will be used for the first time by the private sector at this time.

The Private Space agencies and ISRO are anticipated to use IN-SPACe as a facilitator and regulator. The government wants to advance the Indian Space programme and improve all space activities through this nodal agency.

What are QKD products?

A secure method of communication for exchanging encryption keys that is only known to shared parties is quantum key distribution (QKD). It exchanges cryptographic keys in a verifiable manner that ensures security using principles from quantum physics.

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A key that is used to encrypt and decrypt messages can be created and shared by two parties using QKD. The technique used to distribute the key among parties is known as QKD.

Key distribution on a large scale relies on public key cyphers, which use intricate mathematical calculations and are therefore prohibitively difficult to crack. Public key cyphers, however, face a number of challenges, including weak random number generators, widespread improvements in computing power, and the ongoing development of new attack methods. Quantum computing will also make the majority of current public key encryption techniques unsafe.

In contrast to traditional public key cryptography, which depends on the computational complexity of specific mathematical functions and cannot provide any mathematical proof as to the actual complexity of reversing the one-way functions used, quantum key distribution relies on the principles of quantum mechanics to ensure its security. Based on information theory and forward secrecy, QKD has provable security.

How will this help India?

After the MoU was signed in Bengaluru, it was stated that India has the potential to lead the world in developing a quantum secure communication network with satellite QKD capability.

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According to Prafulla K. Jain, Director (Program Management and Authorization), IN-SPACe, QKD is a crucial technology to guarantee the security of sensitive information shared among various parties.

It is essential to have a strong ecosystem in place for smooth operations without having to compromise any sensitive data in a country like India where the space sector is expanding, he said, as cited by Devdiscourse.

Quoting the same report by Devdiscourse, according to Sunil Gupta, CEO and co-founder of QNu Labs, this technology will change the game and can be used to keep secure the transmission of sensitive information over long distances.

According to him, utilising quantum technology will boost India's scientific leadership, excellence in quantum secure communication, and independence in this crucial area.

According to Dilip Singh, Chief Product Officer at QNU Labs, this partnership will enable the domestic deep tech startup to be the first of its kind to demonstrate QKD network capability covering both terrestrial and satellite medium.