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Treat Data Centres As Strategic Infrastructure, NITI Aayog Urges
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News18•14-10-2026, 19:30
Treat Data Centres As Strategic Infrastructure, NITI Aayog Urges
- •NITI Aayog stated that data centres should be classified as strategic infrastructure rather than mere investment projects.
- •A new report titled Data Centre Evaluation Framework highlights the need for common standards and central guidance to support state-level growth.
- •NITI Aayog CEO Anurag Jain noted that around nine or ten states have shown initial interest by developing policies to attract data centres.
- •The report emphasizes identifying readiness gaps, setting completion dates, and establishing decommissioning plans for sustainable development.
- •Goldman Sachs projects global AI capital expenditure to reach USD 1.6 trillion by 2031, driving massive demand for data centres and power.
Key Questions Answered
The NITI Aayog report recommends that data centres must be treated as strategic infrastructure rather than merely investment projects.
According to NITI Aayog CEO Anurag Jain, nine or ten states have already shown initial interest in developing policies to attract data centres.
Goldman Sachs projects that artificial intelligence capital expenditure will more than double from USD 765 billion to USD 1.6 trillion by 2031, reaching a cumulative total of USD 7.6 trillion.
