Indian data centre operator CtrlS Datacenters said on Tuesday 13 October 2026 that it has signed a letter of intent with the government of the eastern state of Bihar to invest Rs 10,000 crore in a 150 MW “hyperscale AI factory” in Bodh Gaya. On the same day it opened a Rs 400-crore data centre in the state capital, Patna.
The two announcements are very different in status. The Patna data centre is built and open. The Bodh Gaya project is so far only a plan.
The Bodh Gaya plan: a letter of intent
According to the company statement carried by the Press Trust of India, CtrlS “has signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with the Government of Bihar to invest Rs 10,000 crore to set up a 150 MW hyperscale AI factory in Bodh Gaya.”
A letter of intent sets out what two parties plan to do. It is not a binding contract or a final award, and projects announced this way can change or fall through.
Rs 10,000 crore is 100 billion rupees (a crore is ten million). Reuters converted that to about $1.05 billion, at an exchange rate of 95.28 rupees to the dollar.
An “AI factory” is the industry’s name for a large data centre built mainly to train and run AI systems, packed with powerful chips. Its 150 MW figure describes how much electricity the site is designed to use, which is the usual way to measure data centre size.
What has not been announced
None of the reports, and nothing CtrlS has said publicly, gives:
- a timeline for building or opening the Bodh Gaya site;
- where its power will come from;
- which company will supply its AI chips;
- who its customers will be; or
- how it will be financed.
The Patna data centre: open now
The Patna site is the part that has actually happened. The Press Trust of India reported that it was opened in the presence of Bihar’s Chief Minister, Samrat Choudhary. It sits in the Patliputra Industrial Area and “currently offers an IT load of 12 MW, which can be expanded based on future demand.” IT load is the power available to the computer equipment itself.
CtrlS describes the site as “AI and cloud-ready” and says it will serve “enterprises, government institutions, hyperscalers and technology businesses in Bihar and eastern India.” Hyperscalers are the giant cloud companies, such as Amazon, Microsoft and Google.
The company also describes the building as “designed to withstand natural disasters, with military-grade security and energy-efficient operations.” These are CtrlS’s own descriptions and have not been independently checked.
About CtrlS
CtrlS says it “operates 19 data centres across nine markets in India and plans to build over 4.4 GW of data centre capacity by 2030.” It also plans to build “more than 20 edge data centres in tier-2 and tier-3 cities across India over the coming years.” Edge data centres are smaller sites placed close to users so that data has less distance to travel.
What the company said
“Together with our ecosystem partners, we are bringing significant investments into Bihar while creating new employment opportunities and contributing to the region’s economic growth,” said Sridhar Pinnapureddy, CtrlS’s founder and chief executive, in the statement reported by PTI. “The strong market potential and growing demand for digital infrastructure have reinforced our confidence in Bihar.”
In remarks reported by ETTelecom, he thanked the state government “for creating a conducive policy environment, fostering an industry-friendly business climate, and providing attractive incentives that have supported our investment in the state.” The incentives were not described.
What this means
- Only Patna is real so far. The 12 MW site is open; the 150 MW Bodh Gaya project is a letter of intent.
- The big project lacks basic details. There is no published timeline, power source, chip supplier, customer list or financing.
- Bihar is courting data centre investment. CtrlS credits the state’s policies and incentives for its decision, though the incentives have not been made public.
Sources
- ThePrint (PTI), “CtrlS opens Rs 400 cr data centre in Patna, plans Rs 10,000 cr AI factory in Bodh Gaya”, 13 October 2026. https://theprint.in/economy/ctrls-opens-rs-400-cr-data-centre-in-patna-plans-rs-10000-cr-ai-factory-in-bodh-gaya/3070868/
- The Hindu BusinessLine, “CtrlS to invest ₹10,000 crore in Bihar AI factory”, 13 October 2026. https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/info-tech/ctrls-announces-10000-crore-ai-factory-in-bodh-gaya-opens-400-crore-patna-data-centre/article71580725.ece
- Reuters via StreetInsider, “India’s CtrlS to invest $1.05 billion to build hyperscale AI factory in eastern India”, 13 October 2026. https://www.streetinsider.com/Reuters/Indias+CtrlS+to+invest+%241.05+billion+to+build+hyperscale+AI+factory+in+eastern+India/27180032.html
- ETTelecom, “CtrlS signs LoI with Bihar government to invest ₹10,000 crore to establish 150 MW AI hyperscale factory”, 14 October 2026. https://telecom.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/internet/ctrls-signs-loi-with-bihar-government-to-invest-10000-crore-to-establish-150-mw-ai-hyperscale-factory/134930011
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