Foundation of a Digital Future: UP Cabinet Approves Data Centre Policy 2026
The Uttar Pradesh Cabinet has approved the Data Centre Policy 2026, focused on AI-ready and green data centres, targeting over 2 GW of capacity and more than Rs 2 lakh crore in investment — a major step towards making the state a hub of national digital infrastructure.
On 6 July 2026, the Uttar Pradesh Cabinet approved the Data Centre Policy, 2026, in a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow. The new policy replaces the Data Centre Policy, 2021, which expired on 27 January 2026. Data centres are facilities that store, process and distribute digital data through servers, storage systems and network equipment.
The 2026 policy focuses on AI-ready and green data centres, emphasising GPU-based infrastructure, energy efficiency and sustainable operations. It targets more than 2 gigawatts of additional data centre capacity in the state. Alongside, it aims to attract investments of over Rs 2 lakh crore, positioning Uttar Pradesh as a key centre of the digital economy.
To attract investors, the policy offers capital subsidies, interest subsidies and concessions on land, stamp duty and electricity charges, along with infrastructure support. Special incentives are provided for Tier-3 and Tier-4 data centres, AI Compute Booster incentives and Green and Sustainable Operations incentives. Under the earlier 2021 policy, projects worth around Rs 21,343 crore were approved with a combined capacity of 644 MW, and seven projects were operational by 2026.
The policy offers special incentives for Bundelkhand and Purvanchal, promoting balanced regional development. It is expected to generate about 7,500 long-term direct jobs and around 50,000 short-term direct jobs during the construction phase. For exams, this topic is best studied in connection with Digital India, Artificial Intelligence (AI), data protection and the investment policies of states.
Key Points
- The UP Cabinet approved the Data Centre Policy, 2026 on 6 July 2026.
- The meeting was chaired by CM Yogi Adityanath; it replaces the 2021 policy.
- Targets: 2 GW+ capacity and over Rs 2 lakh crore investment.
- Focus on AI-ready and green data centres (GPU-based infrastructure).
- Special incentives for Bundelkhand and Purvanchal; ~7,500 long-term jobs.
📝 Important from Exam Point of View (Exam Focus)
- Data centres store, process and distribute digital data through servers and network equipment.
- Tier-3/Tier-4 data centres offer high redundancy and uptime.
- A GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) is crucial for AI and machine-learning computing.
- The capital of Uttar Pradesh is Lucknow; the Chief Minister is Yogi Adityanath.
