New Delhi: The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has initiated talks with the Ministry of Power to resolve the growing energy concerns tied to the expansion of data centres in India.
Data Centres Face Power and Infrastructure Hurdles
At the Global Technology Summit, IT Secretary S Krishnan acknowledged the increasing demand for data centres driven by cloud computing and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.
He pointed out that despite this demand, expansion efforts face pushback due to the high power consumption of data centres and their limited impact on job creation.
“Even before the rise of AI, there was pressure to expand cloud and data infrastructure. But we must address the real constraints, especially on energy,” Krishnan said.
He added that the IT Ministry is actively engaging with the Ministry of Power and other relevant departments to explore practical solutions that would enable the sustainable growth of data centres.
Shift Towards Green Energy Needs Practical Support
Krishnan noted India’s advantage in green energy availability but stressed that intermittent supply remains a bottleneck. “Green energy isn’t always firm or reliable. That’s a critical challenge when it comes to powering data centres,” he said.
The traditional practice of locating data centres along coastal areas, primarily near submarine cable landings, is also under review. Authorities are now considering relocating them to regions where renewable energy sources are more accessible.
He highlighted the need for reliable energy storage technologies and called for a more flexible approach to sustainability. “We don’t need to look at it as either green or not green. There are middle paths we can consider like using gas-based power in some cases, which is significantly cleaner than coal.”
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