Chandrababu Naidu, Bharti Mittal discuss strengthening digital infrastructure
Amaravati, June 28
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday discussed with Bharti Enterprises founder and chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal the strengthening of the state's digital infrastructure and enhancing connectivity.
Sunil Bharti Mittal called on the Chief Minister at the latter's official residence here.
The Chief Minister posted on 'X' that he was delighted to meet Sunil Bharti Mittal. "We had a productive discussion on strengthening Andhra Pradesh's digital infrastructure and enhancing connectivity for our people. Our conversation focused on expanding last-mile internet and mobile tower connectivity, promoting investments in data centres and an undersea internet cable landing station, and further improving the ease of doing business for mobile service operators in our state," said the Chief Minister.
The details of the talks between the Chief Minister and Sunil Bharti Mittal are not known. An official release from the state government is expected later.
Airtel Nxtra, the date centre subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, is one of the partners in the Google AI Data Centre coming up in Visakhapatnam.
The project, backed by an investment of around $15 billion, will include gigawatt-scale data centre operations powered by clean energy and supported by a strong subsea network.
The data centre, the foundation stone for which was laid in April, will be developed across nearly 600 acres with a total capacity of 1 Gigawatt.
Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, along with Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, had laid the foundation stone for the Google Cloud India AI Hub on April 28.
Chandrababu Naidu had urged Google and its partners in the project, AdaniConneX and Airtel Nxtra, to complete the project for inauguration by September 2028.
The Chief Minister had said that the government would leverage the Google AI Data Centre to enhance the "Speed of Governance" that the government is committed to delivering.
— IANS
Reader Comments
$15 billion project with Google is huge! But we need to ensure local people get jobs and benefits, not just big corporations. Hope the state government keeps that in mind.
Impressive to see Indian states investing in next-gen digital infrastructure. The undersea cable landing station will position Andhra as a major hub for Southeast Asia connectivity. 🇮🇳
Good to see Airtel collaborating with the government. But the real test will be execution - delays are common in such mega projects. Let's hope Naidu's "Speed of Governance" delivers!
This is what progressive governance looks like - inviting global players like Google and Airtel to set up in smaller states. No more waiting for everything to happen in Bengaluru or Mumbai! 🎉
As someone who works in tech, I appreciate the vision. But I hope they also invest in digital literacy programs. Infrastructure alone isn't enough without skills development.
Naidu has always been a tech-savvy CM. Remember how he brought Microsoft to Hyderabad in the 90s? He is doing it again with AI and data centers. Huge potential for job creation!
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