C-DAC
PARAM 8000 – India’s First Supercomputer Full Name: PARAM stands for “PARAllel Machine.” Developed by: Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), Pune. Launched in: 1991. Significance: It was India’s first indigenously developed supercomputer, marking the country’s entry into the global supercomputing arena.
Background and Development During the late 1980s, India faced technology denial from advanced countries like the USA, which refused to export supercomputers due to security concerns. In response, the Government of India launched the National Supercomputing Mission and set up C-DAC in 1988 to develop indigenous supercomputing capabilities.
Within just three years, Indian scientists successfully developed PARAM 8000, showcasing India’s technological self-reliance. Technical Specifications Architecture: Based on parallel processing architecture (many processors working together). Performance: Achieved a speed of 1 GigaFLOPS (1 billion floating point operations per second). Operating System: UNIX-based system developed by Indian engineers. Hardware: Built using Inmos transputers (a type of microprocessor optimized for parallel computing). Scalability: Modular design allowed it to be expanded or upgraded easily.
Global Recognition The success of PARAM 8000 placed India among the top supercomputing nations in the early 1990s. It was exported to countries like Germany, UK, and Russia, showcasing India’s capability in advanced computing technology. Legacy and Successors PARAM 8000 paved the way for a series of more advanced supercomputers such as: PARAM 8600 PARAM 10000 PARAM Padma PARAM Yuva II PARAM Siddhi-AI (ranked among the world’s top supercomputers).
It laid the foundation for India’s National Supercomputing Mission, promoting research in weather forecasting, defense, biotechnology, and space research. Importance Symbol of technological independence and innovation in India. Boosted India’s scientific computing and research capabilities. Served as a turning point in India’s journey toward becoming a global IT and technology leader.
Source: https://thebetterindia.com/82076/india-first-supercomputer-param-cdac-vijay-bhatkar/