Dholera set to be world’s largest data centre city: Gujarat DyCM Harsh Sanghavi

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat govt plans to develop Dholera into the world’s largest data centre city, positioning the greenfield industrial township as the state’s flagship destination for hyperscale digital infrastructure.Deputy chief minister Harsh Sanghavi said investor interest has already exceeded the policy’s target capacity of 7.5GW. He said Dholera alone is expected to emerge as the state’s principal data centre cluster.The govt also plans to develop Dholera into a hub for global capability centres (GCCs), backed by the upcoming international airport and a semi high-speed rail link connecting the region with Ahmedabad.Chief minister Bhupendra Patel said, “The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence, cloud computing, electronics manufacturing, and digital services has created growing demand for digital infrastructure.

The new policy would strengthen Gujarat’s digital economy and position the state as a preferred destination for data centre investments.”Sanghavi further added that the state would soon hold stakeholder consultations with prospective investors and showcase available land parcels. Each investor will be assigned a senior nodal officer to facilitate approvals and coordinate with govt departments.Science and technology minister Arjun Modhwadia said, “Gujarat aims to emerge as India’s leading artificial intelligence and data centre hub over the next decade. The policy is designed to build an ecosystem around artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and quantum computing rather than merely creating data storage facilities.”Calling data the ‘new wealth’ of the digital economy, Modhwadia said India currently has around 200 data centres with a combined capacity of about 2GW, compared with nearly 5,500 in US and more than 500 in UK.