In News:

The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution commissioned the Indian Standard Time (IST) Dissemination Demonstration Network at the Regional Reference Standard Laboratory (RRSL), Bengaluru. The initiative marks a significant step towards creating an indigenous, secure Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for precise and tamper-proof time synchronization across India's critical digital infrastructure.

What is the IST Dissemination Demonstration Network?

• The IST Dissemination Demonstration Network is a secure national network designed to distribute Indian Standard Time (IST) with high precision to critical sectors.
• It has been developed jointly by the Department of Consumer Affairs, CSIR–National Physical Laboratory (CSIR-NPL)—the custodian of IST—and ISRO.
• The network disseminates IST directly traceable to UTC (NPLI), India's realization of Coordinated Universal Time, using White Rabbit (WR) Technology, an advanced extension of the Precision Time Protocol (PTP).
• A pilot verification between RRSL Bengaluru and the National Stock Exchange (NSE), Chennai, has already demonstrated secure and accurate time transmission.

White Rabbit (WR) Technology

White Rabbit is an enhanced version of the IEEE 1588 Precision Time Protocol, combining highly accurate timing with standard Ethernet communication. It enables synchronization of network devices with microsecond-to-nanosecond accuracy through optical fibre networks.

Unlike satellite-based timing systems such as GPS, which are susceptible to spoofing, jamming, and signal disruptions, White Rabbit operates through terrestrial optical networks, making it more secure, resilient, and suitable for critical infrastructure.

Generation and Dissemination of Indian Standard Time (IST)

India's official time is maintained by CSIR–National Physical Laboratory (CSIR-NPL) through UTC (NPLI), which is internationally traceable to the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM), France.

IST (UTC 5:30) is generated using:

• Five Caesium Atomic Clocks for long-term stability.
• Three Hydrogen Masers for superior short-term stability.

Together, they provide an accuracy of approximately ±2.8 nanoseconds relative to UTC.

IST is disseminated through multiple platforms:

• Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS): Provides satellite-based synchronization.
• Two-Way Satellite Time and Frequency Transfer (TWSTFT): Enables highly accurate time transfer and supports NavIC and international UTC links.
• Network Time Protocol (NTP): Distributes IST through time.nplindia.org for government agencies, industries, and digital networks. CERT-In mandates synchronization of critical ICT infrastructure with NPL/NIC time servers.

About CSIR–National Physical Laboratory (CSIR–NPL)

Established in 1947 under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), CSIR–NPL is India's National Measurement Institute (NMI) and the custodian of National Measurement Standards and Indian Standard Time.

Apart from maintaining IST, it develops indigenous technologies in quantum metrology, nanotechnology, advanced materials, environmental monitoring, instrumentation, and sensing technologies, while providing calibration and measurement services to industry, academia, government, and strategic sectors