India / Bhārata: Green building regulations and data center sustainability in India

In India, an increased focus on green buildings, from a regulatory perspective, is pegged to give rise to more sustainable data centers being built in the country. Experts have outlined that the publishing of recommendations on by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), in November of last year, lays the groundwork for the country to become a global hub for cloud computing, and with this is the potential for the data center industry go green. 

The IGBC (Indian Green Building Council), a division of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), has said that this is a key opportunity to drive forward sustainability, and alongside Telecommunication Engineering Center (TEC), the TRAI has entrusted it with the task of “framing certification standards of green DCs in India.” It also outlined that the government should launch an incentive scheme to encourage the implementation of innovative solutions and green initiatives, which could come in the form of a government subsidy. Likewise, inviting Requests for Proposal (RFP) on an experimental basis for new technology/methods/processes for promoting green DCs, was also suggested. 

Further to this, the TRAI recommended that for the overall development of green data centers in India, energy-banking provisions for data centers and data center parks producing renewable green energy should be facilitated by the Ministry of Power yearly.

Likewise, the IGBC will work in tandem with the Telecommunication Engineering Center (TEC) for the adoption of a greener rating system across the data center industry. 

Currently, the adoption of green data centers is voluntary, but commenters say, aside from the growing regulatory and certification support, because India's data center industry is currently still in the development stage, it has more flexibility to adopt greener practices. 

NTT India is an example of how data center operators in the country are working to green their operations. The company, for example, is powering its data centers in Mumbai and Bangalore with solar and wind energy, and is targeting to derive 100% of its data center operations with green energy by 2030. Likewise, it was also responsible for the first deployment of Liquid Immersion Cooling (LIC) and Direct Contact Liquid Cooling (DCLC) technologies in India. Yotta, similarly, is following suit with its own sustainability initiatives. 

The country, currently in its high-growth, digitalization phase, is no doubt well-positioned to develop a data center market that is green from the start, but more robust and comprehensive regulatory guidance and requirements are required to keep it on the right path, alongside continued investment from Indian data center players and global operators.