**2.1 The NKN project**

The National Knowledge Network (NKN, www.nkn.in) represents the main innovation in the Indian e-Infrastructure scenario. NKN is a high bandwidth and low latency network, with three layers. A powerful CORE with 7 Supercore locations with fully meshed multi-10Gbps connectivity and 26 Core locations having multi-10Gbps partially meshed connectivity with Supercore locations. A Distribution layer connected to the network core using multiple links at 2.5/10 Gbps. The Edges networks that connect institutions at 1 Gbps.

The creation of NKN was recommended by the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to Government of India and the National Knowledge Commission and obtained full approval with a budget of over 1 billion euro and a duration of 10 years by Government of India in March 2010. The National Informatics Centre (NIC) a premier Government Institution, is in 284 Grid Computing – Technology and Applications, Widespread Coverage and New Horizons

The paper is organized as follow: in the next section we will present and discuss the Indian scenario about the e-infrastructure while in section three we will discuss the role of the two EU funded projects for the Europe-India collaboration. In section four we present some significant technical achievements that made possible a full exploitation of scientific applications on the Euro-Indian infrastructure. In section five we will introduce the activities performed to promote applications and users communities within the e-infrastructure and will highlight some key examples of the scientific application ported and successfully exploited within the project and their interesting results. Some conclusions are then

In this section we discuss both the network and the grid infrastructure scenario, which had,







In the following sections we will provide a brief description of NKN and TEIN3 initiatives

The National Knowledge Network (NKN, www.nkn.in) represents the main innovation in the Indian e-Infrastructure scenario. NKN is a high bandwidth and low latency network, with three layers. A powerful CORE with 7 Supercore locations with fully meshed multi-10Gbps connectivity and 26 Core locations having multi-10Gbps partially meshed connectivity with Supercore locations. A Distribution layer connected to the network core using multiple links at 2.5/10 Gbps. The Edges networks that connect institutions at 1 Gbps. The creation of NKN was recommended by the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to Government of India and the National Knowledge Commission and obtained full approval with a budget of over 1 billion euro and a duration of 10 years by Government of India in March 2010. The National Informatics Centre (NIC) a premier Government Institution, is in

together with an overview of the Indian National Grid Initiatives.

The most prominent landmarks in the connectivity area since 2006 have been:

data to CERN and subsequently EU-IndiaGrid traffic to EGEE in 2006;


presented in the last section.

**2. Indian e-infrastructures scenario** 

peering with GÉANT in 2009;

link to India in February 2010.

GARUDA transition to NKN.

APGRIDPMA, by CDAC.

Garuda.

**2.1 The NKN project** 

in the last few years a rapid and important evolution.

charge of the implementation. NKN project is aimed at establishing a strong and robust internal Indian network capable of providing secure and reliable connectivity. NKN brings together all the main stakeholders from Higher Education, Science, Technology, Healthcare, Agriculture, Grid Computing, e-Governance. The project aims also at facilitating connection between different sectorial networks in the field of research, education, health, commerce and governance.

Fig. 1. NKN Layers

This approach responds to a vision where different activities in the research domain but also other areas as Healthcare, or e-Governance can move from a silos-like structure to a gradual share of the upper layers from the network to the computing (grid and HPC) and the data management. This e-Infrastructure can provide a core of services not affordable to an individual application jumping across geographical, administrative and academic boundaries (see figure2).

The NKN infrastructure is entirely fiber based and owned by Government of India. It relies on a high capacity highly scalable backbone and covers the entire country. NKN will connect more than 5000 sites across the country serving million of end-users and all major escience projects. In the vision of Prof. Raghavan, Scientific Secretary to Principal Scientific Adviser to Government of India and Chief Architect and Chairman of Technical Advisory Committee of NKN, NKN represents for education a great integrator, making reachable and available the collective wisdom of institutions and laboratories with every Indian, irrespective of the geographical location, being able to benefit by accessing this vast

Applications Exploiting e-Infrastructures Across

Fig. 3. NKN Phase 1

**2.2 International connectivity** 

Europe and India Within the EU-IndiaGrid Project 287

NKN implementation strategy consists of two phases the initial phase and the final phase. Initial phase is already operational with a fully meshed core backbone spanning across the country with twenty-three points of presence (PoPs) and connecting 90 institutions. Efforts

In the initial phase NKN is already providing services for virtual classrooms and grid computing applications such as High Energy Physics to Climate modelling and Health care

NKN is connected to the Pan-European Research network, GÉANT (www.geant.net), by means of a 2-5 Gbps link co-funded by Government of India and the European Commission within the framework of the TransEurasia Information Network project phase 3 (TEIN3, http://www.tein3.net). TEIN3 provides Internet network to the research and education communities in the Asia-Pacific area serving more than 8000 research and academic centre and 45 million users. TEIN3 includes 19 partners and rely on four hubs: Mumbai, Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing (see Figure 4). For India TEIN3 provides a 2.5 Gbps link from Europe to

as well as collaborative design of advanced complex engineering systems.

Mumbai and also a 2.5 Gbps link from Mumbai to Singapore.

are underway to scale the number of institutions connected to 550 in the next future.

Fig. 2. From a silos-like to integrated core of shared advanced services.

intellectual resource. These features are also of paramount impact for research and for health related applications. In this case NKN provides is "Clear Visibility" of whatever medical records are generated at the remote end X Rays, 2D and 3D,MRIs, CT Scans, PETs and so on. Moreover thanks to the very high bandwidth and very low latency a patient requiring critical attention and an expert opinion can be remotely seen, examined, diagnosed, and treated.

286 Grid Computing – Technology and Applications, Widespread Coverage and New Horizons

Fig. 2. From a silos-like to integrated core of shared advanced services.

diagnosed, and treated.

intellectual resource. These features are also of paramount impact for research and for health related applications. In this case NKN provides is "Clear Visibility" of whatever medical records are generated at the remote end X Rays, 2D and 3D,MRIs, CT Scans, PETs and so on. Moreover thanks to the very high bandwidth and very low latency a patient requiring critical attention and an expert opinion can be remotely seen, examined, NKN implementation strategy consists of two phases the initial phase and the final phase. Initial phase is already operational with a fully meshed core backbone spanning across the country with twenty-three points of presence (PoPs) and connecting 90 institutions. Efforts are underway to scale the number of institutions connected to 550 in the next future.

Fig. 3. NKN Phase 1

In the initial phase NKN is already providing services for virtual classrooms and grid computing applications such as High Energy Physics to Climate modelling and Health care as well as collaborative design of advanced complex engineering systems.
