# PM opens RBI's ₹169 crore data centre and cybersecurity institute near Bhubaneswar

URL: https://upsc.help/current-affairs/2026-10-26/rbi-data-centre-bhubaneswar-cyber/
Date: 26 October 2026 (2026-10-26)
Source: The Hindu, Page 10
UPSC papers: GS3
Publisher: upsc.help (Pratidin), free and open-source UPSC Civil Services current affairs. Not affiliated with UPSC. Every fact was checked against the source reports by a separate review before publishing.

**In one line:** The RBI now has a second, geographically safer data centre near Bhubaneswar for its core payment systems, and a training institute to build cyber defence skills for the financial sector.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 25 October 2026 inaugurated the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) new Data Centre and Cybersecurity Training Institute at Info Valley-II in Jatni, near Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The facility, built at a cost of ₹169 crore on 18.55 acres, will host what the government called 'mission-critical payment and settlement systems'. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said it will house RBI systems including RTGS and NEFT, and that the training institute will build expertise in cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra, Odisha Governor Brajmohan Ram and Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi attended. The foundation stone had been laid on 22 March 2023 by the then Governor, Shaktikanta Das.

In his speech, the Prime Minister warned that modern wars are increasingly aimed at economies and not fought only through conventional means. He said financial institutions must be shielded from cybercriminals and cyberterrorists, and that a secure banking system needs secure digital infrastructure supported by robust data centres. He linked the facility to financial inclusion, citing nearly 60 crore Jan Dhan accounts. An official said the site was chosen for its 'geographical stability', away from seismically active zones and high-risk international border areas. Chief Minister Majhi said it would be the second such RBI data centre after the one in Navi Mumbai.

The location logic matters because payment systems are now critical infrastructure. RTGS settles large-value transfers one by one in real time, and NEFT settles retail transfers in half-hourly batches; both have run round the clock since December 2020 and December 2019 respectively. Any outage would freeze interbank payments. A second, geographically distant data centre reduces the risk that a single earthquake, flood or attack takes the core systems offline. The training institute addresses the other half of the problem: the shortage of people who can defend such systems. Together, a stable second site and trained defenders are the two basic answers to the risk the Prime Minister described.

## Prelims facts

- The RBI's ₹169 crore Data Centre and Cybersecurity Training Institute at Info Valley-II, Jatni, near Bhubaneswar, was inaugurated on 25 October 2026.
- The data centre will host mission-critical payment and settlement systems, including RTGS and NEFT.
- The site was chosen for geographical stability, away from seismic zones and high-risk border areas; it is the second such RBI data centre after Navi Mumbai.
- The training institute will build skills in cybersecurity, AI and emerging technologies for the financial sector.
- NEFT has run 24x7 since December 2019 and RTGS since December 2020.

## Quick recall

- **Where is the RBI's new Data Centre and Cybersecurity Training Institute located?** Info Valley-II, Jatni, near Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
- **What did the RBI's new data centre cost?** ₹169 crore.
- **When was it inaugurated, and by whom?** 25 October 2026, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
- **Which two RBI payment systems will the data centre house, as named by the Finance Minister?** RTGS and NEFT.
- **Where is the RBI's other such data centre?** Navi Mumbai.
- **Why was the Bhubaneswar site chosen?** For geographical stability: away from seismically active zones and high-risk international border areas.
- **Since when has NEFT been available 24x7?** December 2019.
- **Since when has RTGS been available 24x7?** December 2020.

## Prelims practice question

With reference to payment systems operated by the Reserve Bank of India, consider the following statements:
1. RTGS settles transactions on a gross, one-by-one basis in real time.
2. NEFT settles transactions in batches.
3. Both RTGS and NEFT are available round the clock.
Which of the statements given above are correct?

(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (d) 1, 2 and 3. All three are correct. RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement) settles each transaction individually and immediately. NEFT (National Electronic Funds Transfer) settles in half-hourly batches. NEFT became 24x7 in December 2019 and RTGS in December 2020. Both will be housed in the RBI's new Bhubaneswar data centre.

## UPSC previous-year questions this connects to

- UPSC Mains 2022, GS3: What are the different elements of cyber security? Keeping in view the challenges in cyber security, examine the extent to which India has successfully developed a comprehensive National Cyber Security Strategy. (https://upsc.help/pyq/q343-different-elements-cyber-security-keeping-view-challenges/)
  How to use this story in the answer: Use the RBI's Bhubaneswar facility as a current example of protecting financial critical infrastructure through redundancy and skilled people.
- UPSC Prelims 2015, Prelims: 'Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana' has been launched for (a) providing housing loan to poor people at cheaper interest rates (b) promoting women's Self-Help Groups in backward areas (c) promoting financial inclusion in the country (d) providing financial help to the marginalized communities (https://upsc.help/pyq/q166-pradhan-mantri-jan-dhan-yojana-has-launched-providing/)
- UPSC Prelims 2017, Prelims: Which of the following is the most likely consequence of implementing the 'Unified Payments Interface (UPI)'? (a) Mobile wallets will not be necessary for online payments. (b) Digital currency will totally replace the physical currency in about two decades. (c) FDI inflows will drastically increase. (d) Direct transfer of subsidies to poor people will become very effective. (https://upsc.help/pyq/q340-following-most-likely-consequence-implementing-unified-payments/)

## Mains practice question

Financial market infrastructure has become a target in modern conflict. Discuss the cyber threats to India's payment systems and the institutional measures needed to make them resilient. (150 words)

### Model answer

The Prime Minister, opening the RBI's ₹169 crore data centre near Bhubaneswar on 25 October 2026, warned that modern wars increasingly target economies.

## Threats
- **Outage risk:** RTGS and NEFT run 24x7; a single-site failure would freeze interbank payments.
- **Cyberattacks:** intrusions and ransomware by cybercriminals and cyberterrorists, which the Prime Minister flagged.
- **Skills gap:** too few trained defenders across banks and regulators.

## Measures
- **Geographic redundancy:** the Bhubaneswar centre, second after Navi Mumbai, sited for geographical stability away from seismic and border zones.
- **Capacity:** the new Cybersecurity Training Institute for cybersecurity, AI and emerging technology skills.
- **Institutions:** CERT-In for incident response, NCIIPC for critical information infrastructure, RBI cyber security frameworks for banks.
- Regular drills, audits and indigenous technology.

Secure money flows are now a part of national security, not only of banking, and resilience must extend from the RBI's systems to every regulated entity.

## The basics

## Why this matters
Every salary credit, UPI settlement between banks and large corporate payment eventually passes through systems run by the Reserve Bank of India. If those systems stop, the economy stops. That is why the RBI's new data centre near Bhubaneswar, and the Prime Minister's warning that modern wars target economies, belong in GS3 under both infrastructure and cyber security.

## The RBI as payment system operator
The RBI is not only a regulator. It directly operates the two biggest interbank payment systems, RTGS and NEFT. Banks connect to them, and final settlement happens in the banks' accounts with the RBI.

## Why a second data centre
Computer systems fail from floods, earthquakes, power cuts or attacks. Large institutions therefore keep critical systems in more than one place, a principle called Business continuity and data centre redundancy. The Bhubaneswar site was chosen for 'geographical stability', away from seismic zones and high-risk border areas, and is the RBI's second such centre after Navi Mumbai.

## People, not just machines
Most breaches exploit people and processes. The new training institute is meant to build skills in cybersecurity, AI and data centre management across the financial sector. It sits within a wider India's cyber security architecture of response teams and protection agencies.

The takeaway for an answer: resilience of payment systems rests on three legs, geographic redundancy, trained people and a national incident-response system.

## Sources

- https://rbi.org.in/Scripts/BS_PressReleaseDisplay.aspx?prid=63862
- https://theprint.in/india/pm-inaugurates-rbis-rs-169-cr-data-centre-cybersecurity-training-institute-in-odisha/3081169/
- https://newsonair.gov.in/pm-modi-inaugurates-rbi-data-centre-and-cybersecurity-training-institute-in-odisha/
- https://www.businesstoday.in/industry/banks/story/rtgs-to-be-available-24x7-from-december-14-rbi-280948-2020-12-09
- https://superkalam.com/current-affairs/26-10-2026/cybersecurity-emerging-as-a-critical-concern-pm-pg10-72c02c83-794e-432d-8e2d-c2fe571c1706