India Data Centre Industry Holds Ministerial Roundtable to Address Infrastructure and Policy Bottlenecks

NEW DELHI — India’s data centre industry represents an estimated investment opportunity of $700 to $800 billion, according to industry stakeholders following a high-level roundtable meeting in New Delhi on Tuesday.

The consultation, led by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, brought together representatives from various government departments, state governments, and major industry players to address structural challenges facing the sector. Key areas of discussion included power availability, land acquisition, regulatory approvals, infrastructure development, and the availability of skilled manpower.

Speaking after the meeting, Devin Narang, Chairman of Turner & Townsend, stated that several operational issues were addressed directly during the session. To manage matters requiring deeper review, the government has formed subcommittees tasked with delivering time-bound solutions. Narang also pointed out the growing need for specialized training infrastructure to support the expanding sector.

Rachit Mohan of JLL highlighted that discussions encompassed the entire value chain required to support rising global and domestic cloud demand. According to Mohan, Minister Goyal outlined an ambitious vision to attract $200 billion in investments into the Indian data centre ecosystem.

The roundtable also drew participation from major technology firms and infrastructure providers. Himani Agrawal, Chief Operating Officer at Microsoft India and South Asia, noted that the company operates a large hyperscale infrastructure footprint in the country, including an AI-ready region in Hyderabad designed to support global and domestic artificial intelligence demand.

Sudhir Prasad, CEO of Tower Vision India, emphasized that India remains competitive globally in terms of capital expenditure (CAPEX) and operational expenditure (OPEX), providing a favorable cost structure for continued sector expansion.

A recurring theme during the discussions was the importance of data sovereignty. Yogesh Kochhar, President of Yotta Foundation, stressed the necessity of hosting domestic sovereign data on local land. Kochhar noted that India currently maintains fewer data centres compared to developed markets, making infrastructure expansion vital as artificial intelligence drives up global computing requirements.

"The formal engagement between industry leaders and the Union Ministry marks a constructive step toward resolving infrastructural bottlenecks in India's data centre ecosystem. With the government targeting substantial capital inflows and addressing core issues like power and land approvals, the sector is positioned for steady long-term expansion. For investors and infrastructure startups, this proactive policy framework significantly improves ease of doing business and strengthens India's digital backbone for the AI-driven economy." — Dr. Shishir Gupta, Founder & CEO, StartupLanes