‘Made in Bastar’: How state known for coal is now building AI data centres

* 145 projects, or half of the total, in new-age sectors such as electronics, pharmaceuticals, textiles, food processing and tourism.

* 18% of the investment headed for Bastar division.

When NITI Aayog came out with its rankings in the category of Regulatory Ease and Institutional Environment among 17 large states in July, it packed a surprise. Topping the list was an unusual name: Chhattisgarh.

As the BJP government at the Centre pushed ahead with its operations to end Maoist insurgency, the state worst affected by it rolled out measures to come out of its shadow, about a year after the BJP wrested power in Chhattisgarh. The Industrial Development Policy 2024-30 unveiled by the Vishnu Deo Sai government in November 2024 proposed measures such as fully digital allotment of 1,548 acres of land for industrial purposes without human intervention, automatic mutation of 2.5 lakh land records, hassle-free registration, and provision of 39,000 services via a single click.

The Industrial Development Policy 2024-30 was unveiled by the Vishnu Deo Sai government in November 2024. (ANI)

Nearly two years later, the impact is showing. Says Rajat Kumar, Secretary, Commerce & Industries: “Reforms only count when it saves time, and time is what investors value most. That is why a state known for coal and steel is now building chips, AI data centres and garments… . Twenty-six years (since the creation of Chhattisgarh), the next 26 will be decided by what we make possible for people to build here.”

On the ground, the time taken for approvals, and receiving NOCs, construction permits and utility connections has been drastically shortened, while the cost of exiting has been cut. Where discretionary, file-based clearance was the norm, there is now time-bound service delivery, automatic escalation on delay and deemed approval where departments do not act.

Even small measures such as the Udyam Aakanksha registration form cutting down the number of fields to be filled on the portal from 126 to just 54 have helped. The portal has been created for registration of enterprises and issue of approval certificates to MSMEs for starting businesses and claiming state incentives.

Officials talk of a surge in applications from previous Maoist heartlands such as Sukma, Dantewada and Kondagaon, by “102%”.

Manorama Industries in Chhattisgarh is now supplying key ingredients to global brands like Ferrero Rocher, Mondelez and The Body Shop. (Special Arrangement)

Says Minister for Commerce and Industry Lakhan Lal Dewangan: “Chhattisgarh is no longer just a land of resources, but a state that turns possibilities into industry and employment.”

What the govt did

Kumar cites five specific measures that have boosted Chhattisgarh to the top in the category of Regulatory Ease and Institutional Environment:

a) Chhattisgarh was the first state to enact a second “Jan Vishwas” legislative edition. Since January 2026, 279 minor business provisions have been decriminalised and compliance shifted from inspector-led enforcement.

b) This year the state also passed the Ease of Doing Business Act, under which Chhattisgarh’s permission system is now based on risk-based classification, with the categories to be notified for 43 services soon. High-risk activities, such as those posing a threat to the environment, will have a notified validity period, and low-risk units move to self-certification or certification by a licensed engineer, architect or chartered professional. If a department does not act within the notified timeline, the approval will be taken as granted.

The Act has also brought in land reforms such as allowing easier conversion of agricultural land for industrial use, with acknowledgement guaranteed in 15 days.

c) Under “entry and compliance”, home-based registration is permitted, which means small businesses with 20 or more employees can register through simple intimation, with no application scrutiny and no inspection. New electricity connections require no site inspection and no contractor test report, only self-certification and an instant online estimate. Homestay registration carries lifetime validity.

d) Certain businesses such as restaurants have been allowed to operate round the clock, with women permitted to work all shifts, subject to safety and hygiene.

e) A OneClick single window system now integrates 186 services across 10 departments, with the applicant receiving regular updates on the status of his or her application, along with geo-tagged inspections and real-time dashboards.

Kumar attributes the realisation of proposals on the ground to these measures, noting that if investment proposals worth over Rs 8 lakh crore across 290 projects have been received, 175 have seen either land being acquired, or clearances underway, or the start of construction and operations.

Several industries entering the state for the first time include India’s ‘first AI Data Centre Park’, being built with a Rs 1,000 crore investment by RackBank in Nava Raipur, with a capacity for 100,000 GPUs (graphics processing units); a semiconductor manufacturing unit; India’s ‘first purpose-built disaster recovery data centre campus (essentially a backup/failsafe location for critical digital infrastructure of metros)’ by Hypernext, involving a Rs 4,200-crore investment; and units in garment manufacturing, consumer electronics, cocoa-based food processing, intraocular lens manufacturing, and global BPO operations.

Ashwin Garg, Urla Industries Association, representing around 500 businesses in Chhattisgarh, calls the steps taken by the government “positive and commendable”.

However, he urges that there should be focus on existing MSMEs as well, adding: “Land availability and affordability remain major concerns, particularly for MSMEs. Industrial areas are becoming crowded and land prices have risen. High power costs and shortage of skilled manpower in Chhattisgarh are other concerns. Value addition is needed and there is scope for it in food processing, herbal products, textiles, pharmaceuticals, aluminium and automobile components.”

Mahesh Kakkad, President of the Chhattisgarh Udyog Mahasang that represents 1,400 businesses, says what Chhattisgarh needs is a “mother industry”, “which can attract a large network of ancillary industries”. Kakkad gives the example of Tamil Nadu, where the arrival of global and Indian vehicle manufacturers has led to factories manufacturing products such as tyres, brakes, engines etc.

Incidentally, even in the NITI Aayog rankings, while Chhattisgarh also ranked high in Environment Resilience and Resources, it was at the bottom in Infrastructure, 13th in Business Climate and 14th in Government Policy.

Kumar says change will soon be visible in these areas too. “The rankings are based on pre-2024-25 data. We have taken up a lot of industrial infrastructural projects, brought out a new Industrial Policy (since then). The eradication of Maoism will have a positive impact too.”

Rajendra Jaggi, the Congress’s business cell in-charge, says the government’s words have to match reality. “If Chhattisgarh is No. 1 in Regulatory Ease and Institutional Environment, the government should tell us if that is translating into investment. New Raipur could not be developed as expected. Why?… How many industries have actually been brought to Bastar?”