PARLIAMENT QUESTION: WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN QUANTUM RESEARCH AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP INCLUDING FELLOWSHIPS

1. At a Glance

Parliament Question (Lok Sabha/Rajya Sabha reply) of 18 March 2026 by the Ministry of Science & Technology detailing gender-inclusive measures within the National Quantum Mission (NQM) and WISE-KIRAN umbrella [S1][S2].
Sits at the intersection of frontier S&T policy (quantum) and Gender-in-STEM — relevant for GS-III (S&T) and GS-I/II (women empowerment, governance).

PIB release dated 18 March 2026 answering a Parliament question on women's participation in quantum research, entrepreneurship and fellowships [S1].
Follows the FY 2024-25 operationalisation of four Thematic Hubs (T-Hubs) under NQM and the March 2026 disbursement of WISE-KIRAN fellowships [S1][S3].

April 2023: Union Cabinet approved the National Quantum Mission with an outlay of ₹6003.65 crore for 8 years (2023-24 to 2030-31) [S4][S1].
2014 onwards: DST's KIRAN (Knowledge Involvement in Research Advancement through Nurturing) division consolidated women-scientist schemes; rebranded as WISE-KIRAN [S2].
FY 2024-25: Four T-Hubs established — Quantum Computing (IISc Bengaluru), Quantum Communications (IIT Madras), Quantum Sensing (IIT Bombay), Quantum Materials (IIT Delhi) [S1].

Implementing Ministry: Ministry of Science & Technology, Department of Science & Technology (DST) [S1].
NQM outlay: ₹6003.65 crore / 8 years [S1].
Skilling & training corpus under NQM: ₹205.49 crore earmarked [S1].
T-Hubs: 4 hubs → 14 Technical Groups → 17 Project Teams → 152 researchers from 43 institutions across 17 States + 2 UTs [S1].
NQM Mission goals (by 2031): intermediate-scale quantum computers (50-1000 physical qubits), satellite-based secure quantum communications over 2000 km, inter-city QKD, multi-node quantum networks [S4].
WISE-KIRAN verticals [S2]:
WISE-PhD — doctoral fellowship, age 27–45.
WISE-PDF — Post-Doctoral Fellowship.
WISE-SCOPE — societal S&T interventions across 5 thematic areas.
WISE-IPR — 1-year on-job training in Intellectual Property Rights.

Scientific/Technological: NQM targets quantum computing, communication, sensing, materials — strategic dual-use tech with implications for cryptography, defence, drug discovery [S4][S1].
Social / Gender: WISE-KIRAN addresses break-in-career of women scientists; NQM activities — fellowships, training, start-up support — are open to women across all states/districts [S2][S1].
Economic / Entrepreneurial: NQM has provisions for start-up support and capacity-building including women entrepreneurs; ties to broader Startup India and DST seed-funding ecosystem [S1].
Governance / Administrative: Mission-mode delivery via T-Hubs in IITs/IISc — hub-and-spoke federalism with consortium institutions across 17 states + 2 UTs [S1].
Strategic: Quantum is a stated tech-sovereignty priority; gender-inclusion broadens the talent pool, vital given global quantum talent shortage [S4].

18 Mar 2026: PIB Parliament answer on women's quantum participation & fellowships [S1].
March 2026: DST notified disbursement of WISE-KIRAN fellowships [S3].
FY 2024-25: NQM T-Hubs at IISc, IIT-Madras, IIT-Bombay, IIT-Delhi made fully functional [S1].
2025: Earmarking of ₹205.49 crore for quantum skilling within academic institutions disclosed [S1].

NQM outlay: ₹6003.65 crore over 8 years [S1].
NQM approved by Cabinet in April 2023 [S4].
T-Hub leads: Computing-IISc Bengaluru; Communications-IIT Madras; Sensing-IIT Bombay; Materials-IIT Delhi [S1].
T-Hub network: 14 Technical Groups, 17 Project Teams, 152 researchers, 43 institutions, 17 states, 2 UTs [S1].
Skilling corpus under NQM: ₹205.49 crore [S1].
Nodal department: DST under Ministry of S&T (not MeitY) [S1].
WISE expands to Women in Science and Engineering [S2].
WISE-PhD eligibility age band: 27–45 years [S2].
WISE-IPR offers 1-year on-job IPR training [S2].
WISE-SCOPE works across 5 thematic societal areas [S2].
Qubit target under NQM: 50–1000 physical qubits by 2031 [S4].
Satellite QKD range target: 2000 km intra-India [S4].

GS-III: Science & Technology — developments and applications, indigenisation of technology.
GS-II: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections (women); government policies.
GS-I: Role of women & women's organisations.
Plausible stems: 1. "Quantum technologies are India's next strategic frontier. Examine how the National Quantum Mission integrates gender-inclusion through fellowships and entrepreneurship support." 2. "Discuss the structural barriers facing women in STEM in India and evaluate the WISE-KIRAN suite of interventions." 3. "Critically assess India's preparedness, in terms of human resource and institutional architecture, to achieve the 2031 targets of the National Quantum Mission."

National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS) — parallel deep-tech mission under DST.
IndiaAI Mission (MeitY) — companion frontier-tech mission; contrast nodal agencies.
GATI Scheme (Gender Advancement for Transforming Institutions) — DST gender-equity at institutional level.
Vigyan Jyoti — girl students into STEM at school level.
CURIE programme — infrastructure in women's universities.
Startup India / BIRAC BIG — entrepreneurship funding pipelines.
National Deep Tech Startup Policy — frames quantum/AI startup ecosystem.
Quantum-safe cryptography & NCIIPC — strategic security linkage.

NQM nodal department is DST, not MeitY or PSA office.
Outlay is ₹6003.65 crore over 8 years, not ₹8000 cr (often confused with Semicon outlays).
T-Hub for Sensing is IIT Bombay, Materials is IIT Delhi — frequently swapped.
WISE-KIRAN ≠ KIRAN alone; KIRAN is the parent division, WISE is the umbrella for women-specific verticals.
NQM was approved in 2023, not 2020 (when the Budget speech first announced a National Mission on Quantum Technologies & Applications, NM-QTA — different precursor).

[S1] PARLIAMENT QUESTION: Women's Participation in Quantum Research and Entrepreneurship including Fellowships, PIB, 18 Mar 2026 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2241761 — (tier 1)
[S2] Women in Science and Engineering-KIRAN (WISE-KIRAN), DST — https://dst.gov.in/scientific-programmes/wise-kiran — (tier 1)
[S3] Disbursement of March 2026 Fellowships under WISE-KIRAN, DST — https://dst.gov.in/news/announcement-regarding-disbursement-march-2026-fellowships-under-wise-kiran — (tier 1)
[S4] National Quantum Mission: India's Quantum Leap, PIB — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2111953 — (tier 1)