Modi Opens RBI’s ₹169-Crore Data Centre in Odisha

The new centre is built to keep India’s most important bank payments running, including transfers through RTGS and NEFT. Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened the ₹169-crore Reserve Bank of India facility and a cybersecurity training institute on Sunday at Info Valley-II in Jatni, near Bhubaneswar. The campus covers 18.55 acres and is the RBI’s second data centre, after its Navi Mumbai site. ^5,10

The 18.55-acre campus will host payment and settlement systems, while its training institute will teach cybersecurity and business technology. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said the centre would make critical systems stronger, safer and more reliable. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said it adds support in India for payment services central to the economy. The institute will also build skills in areas including data science, cloud computing and artificial intelligence. ^4,5

These payment systems matter because people and businesses increasingly rely on digital transfers. A failure or attack could interrupt services and weaken trust. Modi warned that attacks on economies can weaken countries, and said India must guard its banking system against cybercriminals and cyberterrorists. Sitharaman said UPI handles more than 2,400 crore transactions a month. The new facilities are meant to strengthen the systems behind the growing use of digital payments. ^2,10

That growth also set the stage for Modi’s political attack at the event. He accused Congress governments of using “phone banking” to direct large loans to privileged people, linking the practice to bad loans. He contrasted it with direct benefit transfers and recalled a former prime minister’s claim that only 15 paise of each rupee sent reached the public. Congress had not immediately commented. RBI officials will now use the centre and training institute to support payment systems and build cybersecurity skills. ^1,2