The head of the computer science and engineering department at IIT-K, Agarwal has been selected for the award for his design of algorithms for testing of prime numbers.

In a ceremony likely to be held in December at Bengaluru, he will be handed over the prize and a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh.

“Earlier, the design of algorithms used for testing prime numbers was slow and did not provide the correct reading. This is much faster and can code as many digits as possible,” Agarwal told The Indian Express.

Explaining the practical side of the design, he said it is most useful for the online payment system. “For online payment, the prime number is important. A slight error in judging the prime number can lead to the decoding of the credit card,” he said. Possibilities of hacking of credit cards increase if even numbers are used for online payment. Agarwal claimed that his design of algorithms is being used by Prime Number Generation Softwares.

Agarwal completed his BTech in computer sciences from IIT-K in 1986, and his PhD in 1991. Over the years, he has been working on Complexity Theory, a branch of mathematics. “Under the Complexity Theory, we design algorithms which has a step by step solution to each problem. Be it railway reservation or a touring map, the design of algorithms helps in carrying out a programme in the easiest way possible,” he said.