Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday declared that India's ambition to build an ecosystem capable of supporting around 5,000 Global Capability Centres (GCCs) by 2030 is “both realistic and achievable.” Speaking at the CII GCC Business Summit 2026, she described the target as a milestone on a much larger journey for the country to strengthen its position as the world's leading GCC destination.
Current GCC Landscape in India
India currently hosts more than 2,100 GCCs, employing 23 lakh professionals and generating nearly USD 100 billion in annual revenues, according to Sitharaman. She noted that over 500 Forbes Global 2000 companies have established GCCs in the country. “In many sectors, an MNC is now more likely to build its next capability centre in India than anywhere else,” she said.
The Finance Minister highlighted that about two-thirds of the Fortune Global 2000 companies have yet to set up a GCC in India, calling this “one of the largest untapped investment opportunities before us.”
Shift Towards Knowledge-Driven Economy
Sitharaman explained that the global economy is increasingly driven by knowledge and innovation rather than traditional factors of production. “The 21st century is steadily being shaped by a different resource altogether: organised human capability,” she said. “Today, the greatest competitive advantage lies in generating knowledge, applying technology and solving complex problems.”
She also noted that India's GCC ecosystem has entered a new phase of growth, with the pace of expansion accelerating sharply. “In 2024, one new GCC was set up in India every week. Now, on average, one new GCC gets established every day,” she said, adding that India now hosts more than half of the world's GCCs.
Evolving Nature of GCCs
The Finance Minister pointed out that the nature of GCCs is changing rapidly. “More than half of new GCCs are now AI-first. Engineering Research & Development (ERD) has emerged as one of the fastest-growing capability areas,” she said. Indian GCCs are increasingly taking on global leadership mandates and strategic decision-making responsibilities, she added.
Policy Support and State-Level Initiatives
On the policy front, Sitharaman outlined measures introduced in the Union Budget 2026-27 to strengthen India's attractiveness as a global capability destination. These include a Unified Safe Harbour Regime for IT and IT-enabled services, an increase in the Safe Harbour threshold from Rs 300 crore to Rs 2,000 crore, and a fast-track Advance Pricing Agreement (APA) mechanism to provide greater tax certainty. She said these measures “reduce compliance burden, improve policy predictability and allow enterprises to devote greater attention for innovation, research and value creation.”
The Finance Minister also noted that states are actively competing to attract GCC investments. “The response from our States has been encouraging, with at least 10 States having either announced or are developing dedicated GCC policies,” she said, adding that differentiated state-level strategies would make India's innovation ecosystem more resilient and globally competitive.
Call to Industry
Sitharaman urged enterprises to move further up the value chain, deepen partnerships with universities and research institutions, expand into Tier-II and Tier-III cities, and help position India as a global innovation leader. She said India's aspiration is “not merely to host the world's capability centres, but to shape the next-generation technologies, products and enterprises of the future.”
