India’s central bank has opened a new data centre and cybersecurity training institute in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, placing payment-system infrastructure and specialist technology training at the centre of a single new site.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the two facilities for the Reserve Bank of India on 25 October. The opening joins a data centre designed for essential central-bank technology with an institute intended to develop expertise in cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.
The data centre is intended to house mission-critical systems, including RTGS and NEFT. Those services sit within the systems named for the new facility, alongside other major central-bank initiatives. The focus is on a stronger technical base for the financial system as banking and payments rely increasingly on digital infrastructure.
It is a significant operational role. A data centre is more than a storage site: it brings computing systems and critical services into an environment designed to support secure, reliable operation. In this case, the facility has been presented as part of a wider effort to improve the efficiency and reliability of digital financial services. Its purpose is to support the infrastructure on which the central bank’s technology-led work depends.
The cybersecurity training institute has a related but distinct task. It is intended to provide a dedicated setting for training, research and wider capability-building in cybersecurity and enterprise technology. The emphasis on skills recognises that technology resilience depends not only on technical systems but also on people able to understand and respond to changing risks. Training in artificial intelligence and emerging technologies is also planned within its remit.
Combining the facilities gives the project two strands: operating and protecting important digital infrastructure, while building the specialist knowledge needed around it. The central bank has described the initiative as a step towards stronger digital financial infrastructure and greater technological self-reliance. The aim is not limited to one service or one bank; it concerns the underlying systems and expertise that support a large financial network.
The site is at Info Valley-II in Jatni, in the Bhubaneswar area. It covers 18.55 acres, and its foundation stone was laid in March 2023. The inauguration now brings the data-centre and training elements into use as part of Odisha’s growing technology landscape.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the data centre would house the central bank’s mission-critical systems, including RTGS and NEFT, and described resilient infrastructure as important to financial stability and sustained economic growth. Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra said the institution was committed to using emerging technologies, strengthening its digital infrastructure and developing domestic technological capability. Those remarks underline the strategic role envisaged for the new site, beyond the immediate inauguration.
During the event, Modi linked the opening to the next stage of India’s banking development, arguing that the priority is to make services more efficient and reliable as access to formal banking expands. The new facilities were also framed as part of a broader move to strengthen the country’s capacity to deal with evolving digital threats to the financial system.
The practical importance of the project will lie in how its systems and training programmes are put to work. The data centre is intended to support essential payment and settlement functions, while the institute is designed to build technical capability for the sector. Together, they make Bhubaneswar the location for a new piece of national financial infrastructure with both operational and educational roles.
