With the data centre boom gaining momentum following major investment announcements by Google and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the ministry of electronics and information technology (Meity) has moved to fast-track its long-pending National Data Centre Policy. The ministry is reviving industry consultations to simplify regulatory processes, streamline inter-ministerial coordination, and accelerate infrastructure development to meet the surging demand for digital and AI-driven computing power.
Officials told Fe that the renewed policy, in the works since 2020, will focus on ease of doing business rather than financial incentives. The framework will aim to clarify land-use permissions, power access, and network connectivity rules, helping private players expand capacity faster. “The idea is not to incentivise mainly, but to spur private sector investment by making it easier to build and operate data centres,” officials said.
The revised draft is expected to introduce single-window clearances for approvals, revise building and zoning norms, and designate specific Data Centre Economic Zones (DCEZ) with assured access to power and fibre connectivity. Meity is also coordinating with the ministries of power and telecom to resolve long-standing issues around land allocation, energy supply, and cable-laying permissions. “There’s no major financial outlay planned yet. Our approach is to make it faster and easier for the private sector to invest rather than depend on government subsidies,” officials added.
The push comes at a time when private investment in AI and data infrastructure is breaking records. TCS recently unveiled a $7-billion plan to develop a nationwide network of AI-focused and sovereign data centres through a new subsidiary. Days later, Google committed $15 billion to build its largest AI hub outside the US in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. The two projects together match the current installed data centre capacity and will be executed over the next five to seven years.
These developments add to the rapid expansion already underway by players such as Reliance Industries, AdaniConneX, Bharti Airtel, Yotta Infrastructure, STT Telemedia, CtrlS Datacenters, and CapitaLand. Before the latest announcements, Colliers had projected India’s total capacity would triple to 4.5 gigawatts by 2030, driven by $20–25 billion in investments. With the new commitments, both capacity and investment estimates are expected to climb sharply.