Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the State’s Data Centre Cluster project is aimed at making UP the largest AI compute power hub in India and the Global South. (a file photo) | Photo Credit: ANI

The Uttar Pradesh (UP) Data Centre Cluster is a long-term strategy to make the State the biggest artificial intelligence (AI) compute power centre of India and the Global South, Yogi Adityanath has said, adding that the project can begin from the Bundelkhand Industrial Development Authority (BIDA) area, where large-scale land is available.

He said that his objective is to make UP a global hub for AI, data centres, cloud infrastructure and high-tech digital manufacturing. He also said dialogue should be established with major tech companies, including the Tata Group, to develop Lucknow as an ‘AI City’.

State targets ₹2 lakh crore investment in data centres

Earlier this year, the UP government announced plans to develop eight data centre parks across the State, with the initiative expected to attract an investment of around ₹2 lakh crore and generate over 50,000 direct jobs.

Reviewing the Uttar Pradesh Data Centre Cluster (UPDCC), the Chief Minister said that the project will create the basic infrastructure for UP’s AI mission. “The Data Centre Cluster should not remain limited to the NCR region and other parts of the State should also be connected with it,” Adityanath said.

UP eyes $5 trillion economy with AI push

This is one of the targets to build UP a $5 trillion economy, generate more than 1.5 lakh direct jobs and develop a 5-gigawatt AI compute corridor by 2040. The world’s new economy will develop around ‘future arenas’ such as AI, cloud, cyber security, semiconductors, electric vehicles, robotics and space technology, whose combined global market could reach $29-48 trillion, he said.

UP pitches itself as AI infrastructure hub

The CM also described UP as Asia’s most secure, scalable and connected inland AI territory. It was stated that almost all major fibre networks in the country pass through UP, and the State is connected to all of India’s sea cable landing points.

Connectivity of less than 5 milliseconds within the state and 5-12 milliseconds connectivity to digital hubs like Mumbai and Chennai is available. For global tech companies, UP is an ideal AI infrastructure hub with lower costs, better scalability, and higher network redundancy, he added.

IIT Kanpur among institutions powering talent pipeline

In terms of talent, he added that, due to the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, the National Institute of Technology Prayagraj, and more than 50 engineering institutions, the State has a large pool of technical talent.

Published on May 21, 2026