Vizag to emerge as India's top digital infra hub, to create 52,000 jobs: Report

Amaravati: Visakhapatnam is set to become one of India's biggest digital infrastructure hubs and its growing data centre ecosystem is expected to create nearly 52,000 jobs and fuel demand for 2.33 crore sq ft of residential real estate, the government said, citing a private research report on Thursday.

The report estimates that the proposed data centre projects in Visakhapatnam will generate 51,840 jobs, including 3,240 direct jobs and 48,600 jobs across allied sectors such as construction, electrical works, logistics, warehousing, transport, hospitality, retail, maintenance and other support services.

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"Visakhapatnam is set to become one of India's biggest digital infrastructure hubs, with its growing data centre ecosystem expected to create 51,840 jobs and fuel demand for 2.33 crore sq ft of residential real estate," an official release said.

According to the report, the biggest impact of data centres will not be limited to the campuses themselves, instead, they will create an entire ecosystem of businesses and services around them, attracting investments in power, fibre connectivity, utilities, logistics and commercial infrastructure.

This, in turn, is expected to create new employment opportunities and accelerate economic activity across the region, it said.

Further, it is projected that this growth will drive demand for 2.33 crore sq ft of residential real estate in and around Visakhapatnam as more people move to the city for jobs and businesses expand to support the growing digital economy.

Commercial spaces, warehouses, retail centres and civic infrastructure are also expected to see significant growth, the release said.

Data centres are emerging as the next big driver of urban growth in India by attracting large-scale investments and creating a strong ecosystem of ancillary industries, it said.

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They have the potential to reshape local economies and transform surrounding regions, it added.

With marquee global investments already announced for Visakhapatnam, the report says the city is well placed to lead Andhra Pradesh's next phase of infrastructure-led growth and job creation.