India is projected to expand its data centre capacity to 4–8 GW by 2030, with 90 cities identified as suitable for future data centre development. The country’s Union MoS Electronics and Information Technology, Jitin Prasada, emphasized the evolving significance of India’s data centre ecosystem as crucial national infrastructure supporting technological and economic goals.
The growing influence of artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and emerging technologies like 6G is expected to elevate the role of data centres in shaping digital value creation and processing. A recent report highlighted the need for infrastructure-grade planning, advocating for grid-integrated power supply, water-efficient cooling systems, and cohesive policy interventions to ensure sustainable and resilient data centre expansion.
NFPRC Foundation Chairperson, Tarun Chugh, underscored the escalating importance of data centres as a fundamental component of national infrastructure and strategic autonomy. The report launch event convened policymakers, industry leaders, and technology experts to discuss the future trajectory of India’s digital infrastructure landscape.
Chugh emphasized the necessity of robust backend infrastructure to support India’s digital transformation driven by initiatives like DigiLocker and digital public infrastructure. He also stressed the significance of collaborative efforts between the central and state governments to foster competitive investment ecosystems and infrastructure development.
Rajya Sabha MP Sujeet Kumar, a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology, highlighted India’s rapid shift towards a multi-gigawatt data centre economy fueled by escalating demands from AI workloads, cloud services, financial sectors, and digital public infrastructure. Data centres play a pivotal role in India’s digital economy, processing billions of digital transactions annually, including nearly 70 million UPI transactions daily.
