- Why in news
- On 24 September 2026, DRDO signed its first high-value deep tech project agreement under the Technology Development Fund (TDF) with start-up Zero mK India Private Limited, to build a 20 mK dilution refrigerator indigenously.
- What it is
- The Technology Development Fund is a DRDO scheme that supports industry, including start-ups and MSMEs, in developing defence and dual-use technologies. A dilution refrigerator is a cryogenic machine that reaches millikelvin temperatures, which many quantum computing platforms need in order to work. India has depended on imports for these machines.
- First high-value deep tech agreement
- The agreement with Zero mK India Private Limited is the first high-value deep tech project agreement under TDF.
- Rs 500 crore corpus
- The deal is the first under a Rs 500 crore corpus approved earlier by the Raksha Mantri for deep-tech and cutting-edge projects.
- What a dilution refrigerator does
- It is a cryogenic system that reaches millikelvin temperatures, needed to operate and test several quantum computing platforms.
- Link to National Quantum Mission
- The project aligns with the National Quantum Mission and aims to cut dependence on imported cryogenic infrastructure.
- Monitoring lab
- The Solid State Physics Laboratory (SSPL) of DRDO monitors, mentors and supports the project.
Don’t confuse with TDF vs iDEX: TDF is run by DRDO and funds technology development projects by industry. iDEX is the Defence Innovation Organisation's scheme under the Ministry of Defence for start-ups and innovators solving armed forces problems.
Don’t confuse with Millikelvin vs Kelvin scale: 20 mK is 0.02 kelvin, far colder than liquid helium at about 4 K, which is why dilution refrigerators are needed for quantum devices.
Defence: Prelims tests exercises (with whom), equipment (who makes it) and firsts.
Why it matters
- Builds domestic capability in cryogenics and quantum hardware, reducing import dependence.
- Shows DRDO using industry and start-ups for deep tech, supporting self-reliance in strategic technology.
Problems
- Reaching and keeping millikelvin temperatures reliably is technically hard, and the project is still at an early stage.
- Start-ups need long-term funding and demand to scale such specialised hardware.
Way forward
- Link the project to National Quantum Mission users such as research labs for assured demand and testing.
- Make follow-on funding and procurement clear so prototypes can become products.
Put in your answer
TDF deep tech corpus: Example of DRDO-industry collaboration: the first agreement under the Rs 500 crore deep-tech corpus.
National Quantum Mission: Example of how an indigenous dilution refrigerator supports the mission and a self-reliant quantum ecosystem.
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UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: First deep-tech TDF agreement under the Rs 500 crore corpus, linked to the National Quantum Mission; defence hardware rarely reaches Mains.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.