New Delhi, March 18 (IANS) India’s data centre capacity has expanded more than fourfold to over 1,500 MW in 2025 from 375 MW in 2020, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Jitin Prasada told the Parliament on Wednesday.

In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, the minister said the growth reflects the government’s focus on strengthening digital infrastructure and expanding access to technology.

“In line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision, the government is democratising the development and usage of technology,” he said.

Prasada added that efforts are being made to facilitate the establishment of data centres across the country to improve the delivery of digital services.

According to the data shared, Mumbai and Navi Mumbai account for the largest share of operational data centre capacity at 790 MW, followed by Chennai (305 MW), Bengaluru (182 MW), Hyderabad (152 MW), and Delhi-NCR/Noida (76 MW). Other cities, including Pune and Kolkata, account for a smaller share.

Prasada also said that four submarine cable systems are currently under commissioning at various cable landing stations by telecom service providers. These include India Europe Xpress by Reliance Jio, SEA-ME-WE-6 and 2Africa by Bharti Airtel, and the Raman Cable by Sify Technologies, with landing stations primarily in Mumbai and Chennai.

In addition, three more submarine cable systems are under planning, including projects by Tata Communications, Reliance Jio, and Sify Technologies, for which applications have been submitted to the Department of Telecommunications.

The minister clarified that the government is not planning to establish new sub-sea gateways at present.

He further noted that the Reserve Bank of India has mandated that all payment system data must be stored within India, as part of efforts to ensure a safe and trusted digital ecosystem.

The government’s policies are aimed at building adequate data storage capacity within the country and strengthening cybersecurity, he added.

–IANS

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