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India’s data center boom is rapidly becoming a major business, and law firms are playing a crucial role in developing these projects.
As the country expands its digital infrastructure to support AI and data storage, legal work related to data centers has increased. Lawyers say their responsibilities now include everything from land and power planning to obtaining regulatory approvals, securing financing, and ensuring long-term compliance.
The surge in legal demand comes as investments in India’s data center and AI infrastructure reach unprecedented levels. Google has committed about $15 billion to build a gigawatt‑scale AI‑ready data center hub in Visakhapatnam in partnership with AdaniConneX and Bharti Airtel over the next five years.
Amazon announced plans to invest more than $35 billion in India by 2030, much of it aimed at expanding AI and cloud capabilities that will require large data center capacity.
Indian IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has also entered a strategic investment path with private equity firm TPG, committing around Rs 18,000 crore (about $2.1 billion) to build AI data centers through its HyperVault joint venture.
Arun Prabhu, partner at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, noted that advisory work linked to digital infrastructure has resulted in concrete business growth for the firm. “Digital infrastructure and connectivity sectors have seen significant growth from a transactions and advisory standpoint, and this has been reflected in our advisory revenues,” he said.
The firm has advised Equinix and Iron Mountain on entering the Indian market, worked on Lumina’s digital infrastructure platform, and assisted lenders with joint ventures, including Adani Connex. Prabhu mentioned that these projects often require aligning global business models with Indian licensing and regulatory systems.
“This has involved assessing how global solutions align with India’s regulatory framework and ensuring compliance with legal obligations,” he said.
Prabhu explained that the long lifespan and high capital intensity of data center projects make legal structuring essential. “Transactions in this area are complex and must provide stable, long-term rights, licenses, and contracts,” he added. He pointed out that regulatory permissions, litigation risks, and environmental clearances are significant obstacles for large greenfield projects.
This trend is evident across all major law firms. Shantanu Gupta, partner at Khaitan and Co, stated that data centers have become one of the firm's fastest-growing practice areas as investment activity has increased in recent years. “Today, demand is much broader than just pure acquisitions,” he said.
Khaitan and Co advised on establishing a data center platform led by Digital Edge, in partnership with NIIF and AGP Sustainable Real Assets, centered on a substantial greenfield development in Navi Mumbai. Gupta explained that their work involved structuring joint ventures, acquiring land, procuring power, ensuring regulatory compliance, and securing financing.
He added that delays in India are often due to basic issues rather than complex deals. “Assembling clean land parcels, obtaining permits and utilities, and securing reliable green power are the biggest challenges,” Gupta said. Law firms assist by coordinating approvals and structuring contracts to facilitate project progress to the operational stage.
At a mid-sized law firm, similar patterns are visible. Ashima Obhan, senior partner at Obhan and Associates, said data center work has become a significant part of the firm’s practice in the past five years.
“Demand has shifted from initial investments to large-scale, strategic deployments,” Obhan said. She mentioned that the firm has provided advice on complicated issues involving cross-border financing and long-term power agreements, where delays in land, permits, or energy supply can hinder projects.
Obhan noted that compliance is no longer a routine task. “The goal is to ensure that new facilities are future-proof, legally compliant, environmentally responsible, and meet global best practices,” she said.
As India builds large-scale digital infrastructure, law firms are playing a vital role in shaping the growth and development of the data center economy.
As the country expands its digital infrastructure to support AI and data storage, legal work related to data centers has increased. Lawyers say their responsibilities now include everything from land and power planning to obtaining regulatory approvals, securing financing, and ensuring long-term compliance.
The surge in legal demand comes as investments in India’s data center and AI infrastructure reach unprecedented levels. Google has committed about $15 billion to build a gigawatt‑scale AI‑ready data center hub in Visakhapatnam in partnership with AdaniConneX and Bharti Airtel over the next five years.
Amazon announced plans to invest more than $35 billion in India by 2030, much of it aimed at expanding AI and cloud capabilities that will require large data center capacity.
Indian IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has also entered a strategic investment path with private equity firm TPG, committing around Rs 18,000 crore (about $2.1 billion) to build AI data centers through its HyperVault joint venture.
Arun Prabhu, partner at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, noted that advisory work linked to digital infrastructure has resulted in concrete business growth for the firm. “Digital infrastructure and connectivity sectors have seen significant growth from a transactions and advisory standpoint, and this has been reflected in our advisory revenues,” he said.
The firm has advised Equinix and Iron Mountain on entering the Indian market, worked on Lumina’s digital infrastructure platform, and assisted lenders with joint ventures, including Adani Connex. Prabhu mentioned that these projects often require aligning global business models with Indian licensing and regulatory systems.
“This has involved assessing how global solutions align with India’s regulatory framework and ensuring compliance with legal obligations,” he said.
Prabhu explained that the long lifespan and high capital intensity of data center projects make legal structuring essential. “Transactions in this area are complex and must provide stable, long-term rights, licenses, and contracts,” he added. He pointed out that regulatory permissions, litigation risks, and environmental clearances are significant obstacles for large greenfield projects.
This trend is evident across all major law firms. Shantanu Gupta, partner at Khaitan and Co, stated that data centers have become one of the firm's fastest-growing practice areas as investment activity has increased in recent years. “Today, demand is much broader than just pure acquisitions,” he said.
Khaitan and Co advised on establishing a data center platform led by Digital Edge, in partnership with NIIF and AGP Sustainable Real Assets, centered on a substantial greenfield development in Navi Mumbai. Gupta explained that their work involved structuring joint ventures, acquiring land, procuring power, ensuring regulatory compliance, and securing financing.
He added that delays in India are often due to basic issues rather than complex deals. “Assembling clean land parcels, obtaining permits and utilities, and securing reliable green power are the biggest challenges,” Gupta said. Law firms assist by coordinating approvals and structuring contracts to facilitate project progress to the operational stage.
At a mid-sized law firm, similar patterns are visible. Ashima Obhan, senior partner at Obhan and Associates, said data center work has become a significant part of the firm’s practice in the past five years.
“Demand has shifted from initial investments to large-scale, strategic deployments,” Obhan said. She mentioned that the firm has provided advice on complicated issues involving cross-border financing and long-term power agreements, where delays in land, permits, or energy supply can hinder projects.
Obhan noted that compliance is no longer a routine task. “The goal is to ensure that new facilities are future-proof, legally compliant, environmentally responsible, and meet global best practices,” she said.
As India builds large-scale digital infrastructure, law firms are playing a vital role in shaping the growth and development of the data center economy.
