India uses nuclear law, BIS standards to manage AI data centre growth

India's data centre capacity has quadrupled in six years, growing from 375 MW in 2020 to approximately 1,575 MW, driven by increasing demand for AI and high-performance computing. The government has outlined its strategy to manage the environmental strain caused by this expansion.

Key to the new approach is the enactment of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Act. This law is intended to facilitate the deployment of small modular reactors to provide reliable, clean energy for data centres and AI infrastructure. The government also cited various renewable energy schemes, including the Green Energy Open Access Rules and the National Green Hydrogen Mission, as part of its sustainability efforts.

Furthermore, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has published new Indian Standards through its LITD 31 technical committee. These standards cover metrics such as Power Usage Effectiveness, Carbon Usage Effectiveness, Cooling Efficiency Ratio, and Water Usage Effectiveness. Additionally, the Bureau of Energy Efficiency has updated building codes relevant to energy and water efficiency for data centres.

However, the government's response to Parliament left several questions unanswered. Details on whether compliance with the new BIS standards is mandatory or voluntary were not provided, nor were specific, quantified environmental targets or actual consumption data for AI-related operations. The response also lacked information on industry incentives and enforcement mechanisms.

These regulatory steps follow a significant disruption earlier this year when a fire at a third-party data centre in Delhi caused widespread network outages.