AI data centres will be India's next growth engine says Ashwini Vaishnaw at inaugural event of Jabil India's new manufacturing facility
New Delhi, June 17
Union Minister of Railways of India, Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Wednesday that AI data centres will drive India's next phase of digital growth, speaking at the inauguration ceremony of Jabil India Pvt Ltd's new manufacturing facility in Pune. He called them a crucial pillar for the country's digital economy in the coming decade.
"AI data centres have become a huge growth engine worldwide. Manufacturing all the major electronic components of AI data centres in India is crucial," Vaishnaw said. He added that this focus is "a crucial point in the Prime Minister's Make in India plan" as Jabil begins producing data centre components at the new Pune plant, which he described as "a very modern, advanced, high-tech facility with excellent capacity."
The minister said the next 5-10 years will be defined by how quickly India scales computing, power and cooling infrastructure for AI workloads. He noted that the government, working with states like Maharashtra, is streamlining land, energy and regulatory approvals to help hyperscalers and cloud players set up large-scale data centres faster. Domestic manufacturing of servers, cooling systems, semiconductors and PCBs will cut import dependence and create high-skill jobs across the value chain, he said.
Vaishnaw also linked the expansion to broader connectivity and logistics upgrades around Pune. He said a campaign to double railway capacity in the city is underway, with work completed at Harabshar, Khadki and Shivaji Nagar platforms, a mega terminal coming up at Alandi, and six new platforms planned at Pune Junction. He added that a Mumbai-Pune bullet train was proposed in this budget and will cut travel time to 48 minutes, while the first section of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad corridor will be inaugurated next year.
"India has been established as a trusted partner globally due to the foreign policy adopted by the Prime Minister. That is why India is considered a preferred destination worldwide, especially in the electronics sector," Vaishnaw said, noting that electronics manufacturing is now India's third-largest export category and employs around 12 lakh people.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Great vision, but the ground reality is different. Our power grid can barely handle normal demand in summers, let alone massive AI data centres 🥵. We need to fix basic infrastructure before dreaming big. Also, cooling systems in India's heat - that's going to be a major challenge. Hope they have plans for renewable energy to power these.
Make in India finally getting serious about high-tech! 🚀 Electronics becoming third largest export is no joke. But we need to ensure local engineers and technicians are trained for these advanced manufacturing jobs. The education system needs to align with industry needs.
As someone working in tech, this is exciting! India has the software talent, now we need the hardware ecosystem. But 48 minutes Mumbai-Pune bullet train? Sounds ambitious given the land acquisition challenges we've seen with other projects. Let's focus on realistic timelines.
Valid points about global trust - we're seeing more and more companies shift from China. But AI data centres consume huge amounts of water for cooling. In a water-stressed country like India, we need to think about sustainable solutions, not just growth numbers. Green data centres must be the priority.
This is the kind of infrastructure we need for the AI revolution 🇮🇳. The railway capacity doubling in Pune is long overdue. With all these tech parks and manufacturing units coming up, Pune will be the next Bengaluru. Hope they plan for residential and transport infrastructure too.
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