India's First AI SEZ to Rise in Nava Raipur with Rs 10 Bn Investment

30 May 2025 CW Team

The project will be undertaken by Indore-based RackBank Datacenters, a carbon-neutral data centre company, with an investment of Rs 10 billion. According to a commerce ministry order cited by the Chhattisgarh government, the SEZ will feature cutting-edge infrastructure to support AI research, development, and deployment.

Spanning six acres, the RackBank Data Center SEZ will include a 1.5 lakh square foot facility equipped with high-performance servers and systems designed to support AI technologies and extensive digital operations. The zone is being envisioned as a digital command centre for the nation, with plans to establish four high-density data centres offering a combined capacity of 80 megawatts—enough to sustain digital infrastructure across several Indian states.

The government noted that the SEZ would enjoy tax benefits and regulatory ease under the SEZ policy framework, thereby creating a conducive environment for both global and domestic enterprises to engage in advanced AI development and data-centric innovation.

The AI SEZ is anticipated to host operations of major global tech firms, including Google, OpenAI, Microsoft, and Meta. For the first time, India is poised not only to consume AI services developed abroad but also to emerge as a centre for their creation, hosting, and large-scale delivery.

Beyond its technological and economic implications, the project is also expected to have a profound social impact. It aims to offer young talent from remote districts like Kanker, Sukma, Bilaspur, and Dantewada the opportunity to relocate to Raipur and access world-class employment prospects—potentially curbing the need for migration to metros such as Bengaluru or seeking jobs overseas.

News source: Mint

Equipment

12 May 2026

L&T Achieves Double Tunnel Breakthrough at Dibang

Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has achieved a historic double milestone at the Dibang Multipurpose Project (Lot-02) in Arunachal Pradesh. On 28 April 2026, its Heavy Civil Infrastructure team recorded simultaneous breakthroughs in Diversion Tunnel-4 and Diversion Tunnel-5, successfully coordinating two daylighting blasts on the same day amid the difficult geological and environmental conditions of the Lower Dibang Valley.With this, the project has now completed breakthroughs in three of the five diversion tunnels, following DT-3 in February. The 2880 MW Dibang Multipurpose Project is a critical..

ICEMA Reports Resilient CE Industry Amid Export Surge

India’s construction equipment (CE) industry reported a marginal decline of around 2 per cent in total equipment sales during FY2025–26, with overall sales falling to 136,995 units from 140,191 units in FY25. However, exports registered strong growth of 31.5 per cent, reinforcing India’s position as the world’s third-largest construction equipment market.According to ICEMA, domestic demand declined by around 7 per cent across most equipment categories due to slower infrastructure execution, project delays, land acquisition challenges and slower disbursement cycles. ICEMA said the secto..

Shivraj Chouhan Launches PMGSY IV and Announces Package for Madhya Pradesh

Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) IV at Bhairunda in Sehore district during the 25 year celebrations and announced a development package for Madhya Pradesh. The programme was organised by the Union Ministry of Rural Development and attended by Chief Minister Dr Mohan Yadav, ministers of state, state ministers, legislators and senior officials from the centre and the state. The minister said the central government under the Prime Minister is committed to strengthening rural livelihoods through improved connectivity, housing and women's in..