New Delhi, May 26 (IANS) Emerging cities in India are emerging as the next growth hubs for global capability centres (GCCs), recording a 42 per cent rise in GCC job openings compared to 19 per cent growth in metro cities, driven by improving infrastructure, supportive government policies and the growing role of artificial intelligence (AI), according to a report released on Tuesday.

The report, titled Emerging Cities: India’s Next Frontier for GCC Expansion Report 2026, released by ANSR, said India is witnessing a structural shift in its GCC landscape as enterprises increasingly look beyond traditional metro locations to build distributed and resilient operations.

According to the report, the transformation is being powered by six converging factors, including a rebalancing of talent geography, rapid infrastructure development, a more favourable policy environment and the growing adoption of AI technologies.

Emerging cities are benefiting from significant investments in transport and business infrastructure through budget allocations, Special Economic Zone (SEZ) expansions, metro rail projects and airport modernisation programmes.

The report noted that the Union Budget 2025 has further accelerated this transition through the introduction of a national guidance framework aimed at creating GCC-ready ecosystems outside major metropolitan centres.

It described the initiative as the first coordinated government-backed effort to promote GCC expansion into Tier-2 cities.

AI is also playing a critical role by reducing the capability gap between Tier-1 and Tier-2 locations, enabling companies to establish high-value operations across a broader geographic network.

This is creating new opportunities for enterprises to develop distributed delivery models without compromising on capabilities, the report said.

ANSR, which specialises in establishing and scaling GCCs, assessed 14 emerging locations — GIFT City, Bhubaneswar, Coimbatore, Indore, Jaipur, Kochi, Lucknow, Mangalore, Mysuru, Thiruvananthapuram, Navi Mumbai, Visakhapatnam, Bhopal and Warangal — on parameters including talent attractiveness, infrastructure readiness, business and regulatory environment, and quality of life.

The report highlighted that India currently hosts more than 1,900 GCCs employing over 2.1 million professionals and contributing more than 1.5 per cent to the country’s GDP.

“Emerging cities are no longer alternatives to Tier-I metros. They are strategic complements within a more resilient and diversified operating model,” said Smitha Hemmigae, Managing Director, ANSR.

–IANS

pk