The government is strengthening domestic cloud infrastructure through the MeghRaj initiative, the IndiaAI Mission and measures to encourage private-sector investment. These efforts aim to support the growing volume of digital activities and improve access to secure and reliable computing resources across government and industry.
Cloud computing allows organisations to access data storage, servers, software and computing capacity over the internet according to their requirements. This reduces the expenditure involved in purchasing and maintaining their own servers and other equipment. It also enables organisations to launch digital services more quickly, scale computing resources as needed and maintain secure data backups.
According to the government, the expansion of digital activities is contributing to a steady increase in data consumption. India had 1,092.79 million internet subscribers as of March 2026. Average wireless data consumption stood at 25.51 GB per subscriber per month, while total wireless data consumption during the financial year 2025-26 reached 285,376 petabytes. The growing use of digital payments, online government services and AI applications has increased the need for secure and reliable digital infrastructure.
To strengthen domestic cloud capabilities, the government launched the MeghRaj initiative in 2014. Led by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the initiative aims to promote e-governance and improve the utilisation of expenditure on information and communication technology in the public sector.
Under MeghRaj 2.0, government departments can access cloud services according to their requirements. Digital services hosted through the framework include DigiLocker, MyGov, the National Scholarship Portal and the Department of Posts’ Advanced Postal Technology.
As of September 2026, 30 cloud service providers had been empanelled for government use in India. These include Indian companies such as Jio Platforms, Tata Consultancy Services, BSNL, ITI Limited, RailTel, AdaniConneX and Yotta Data Services. International companies, including Google Cloud, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services and Oracle, are also on the list.
The infrastructure operated by these providers is spread across several locations, including Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR and Jamnagar. This network supports the delivery of cloud services to government departments and other organisations.
Cloud adoption is increasing across both the public and private sectors. Hospitals can use cloud platforms to introduce online appointment systems, schools can store student records securely, and online examination portals can increase their computing capacity according to demand. Cloud-based backup systems can also help restore data if equipment fails or technical disruptions occur.
The Digital India Bhashini platform provides an example of domestic cloud deployment. In February 2026, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology stated that Bhashini had been migrated to an Indian cloud operated by Yotta Data Services. The deployment helped keep language-related data, AI models and interactions with citizens within India's jurisdiction.
According to the information provided at the time, the migration delivered an improvement of up to 40% in performance, savings of 20-30% in costs and an uptime of 99.99%. During Maha Kumbh 2025, Bhashini had provided real-time translation and voice-based assistance in more than 11 Indian languages.
Alongside cloud adoption, the government is focusing on expanding the country's physical data centre infrastructure. India's data centre capacity stood at 1.57 GW as of August 2026 and is projected to reach approximately 8 GW by 2030.
Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR and Jamnagar are among the major data centre hubs. New centres are also emerging in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal.
Investment in the sector is ongoing, with approximately $70 billion being invested and additional projects worth $90 billion announced. The expansion is expected to strengthen the infrastructure required to support the country's growing digital economy and computing needs.
The National Informatics Centre (NIC) is another important component of India's government data centre network. It operates four national data centres and 24 mini data centres across the country. These facilities provide government departments with shared hosting, co-location and cloud services.
The IndiaAI Mission is also working to improve access to computing resources for artificial intelligence development. The initiative has a budget of Rs 10,371.92 crore and has made more than 45,000 graphics processing units (GPUs) available through a shared AI computing facility. These resources can help startups and academic institutions develop AI applications by providing access to the computing capacity required for their work.
The expansion of cloud infrastructure is also increasing demand for trained professionals. Under the FutureSkills PRIME programme, 3.4 million candidates had registered as of August 2026, of whom more than 2.3 million had undergone training or were participating in training.
The National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT) operates 56 centres, 750 affiliated institutions and more than 9,000 facilitation centres. These institutions provide training in various technology fields, including cloud computing, AI and cybersecurity.
Alongside infrastructure development and skills training, the government has introduced policy measures to guide cloud selection and strengthen data security. In March 2026, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology issued a cloud selection framework that provides guidelines for choosing cloud infrastructure based on data sensitivity and criticality.
The framework includes provisions to prioritise government cloud services, such as those offered by NIC and state data centres, while allowing the adoption of hybrid cloud models involving empanelled service providers.
The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, also contains provisions concerning the processing of personal data and cross-border data transfers. These provisions form part of the broader regulatory framework governing digital data.
As India expands its use of cloud computing and AI, the development of domestic data centres, shared computing facilities and government cloud services is becoming an important part of its digital infrastructure strategy. The government's focus on domestic capacity, data protection and technology skills is aimed at strengthening digital sovereignty, supporting secure government services and advancing technological self-reliance.
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