Why NITI Aayog wants stricter power, water checks before approving data centres

NITI Aayog proposes linking data centre incentives to power and water availability, environmental safeguards and measurable economic benefits. The framework calls for grid readiness checks and stricter resource-efficiency standards as India expands AI infrastructure.As India prepares a dedicated policy for data centres amid growing investments in AI infrastructure, a framework prepared by NITI Aayog’s Frontier Tech Hub has proposed that states assess projects based on electricity and water availability, environmental safeguards and measurable economic benefits, rather than investment commitments alone.