Overview
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited global firms to host their data in India, linking the Budget incentives to lower build costs and job creation.
- The Budget grants eligible foreign cloud providers an income-tax holiday from 2026-27 through 2046-47, with services to Indian customers required to be routed via local resellers to keep domestic revenue taxable.
- Safe-harbour margins were outlined to reduce disputes, including 15% on cost for related data-centre entities and a common 15.5% margin for IT services.
- India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 received Rs 1,000 crore for 2026-27, while the Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme rose to about Rs 40,000 crore with 149 applications.
- Industry estimates put data-centre capacity near 1,280 MW with roughly $70 billion in projects underway and another $90 billion announced, as New Delhi prepares to host the Global AI Impact Summit from February 16 to 20.