# Mohali, UP, Karnataka pitch for next GCC hub after Bengaluru 2026-08-24T22:32:04+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka have presented their strategies to become the next global capability centre (GCC) hub in India, moving beyond Bengaluru and Hyderabad. The pitches were made at a recent technology and GCC leadership conference. Punjab is pushing Mohali as a GCC destination, citing talent and quality of life. Principal secretary Gurkiraf Kirpal Singh said 1.25 lakh tech professionals work in the tri-city area, and the state offers incentives including 125 per cent support on fixed capital investment. Uttar Pradesh is focusing on Lucknow as an AI city and centre of excellence, identifying 25 institutions to offer deep-tech courses. Karnataka is working to develop Mysuru and Mangaluru as GCC hubs alongside Bengaluru, with the state's digital economy mission CEO Sanjeev Kumar Gupta saying the GCC market could grow from USD 60 billion to USD 100 billion. ## Indian Opinion Analysis GCCs have become a major driver of India's services exports, employing over 1.6 million people across 1,600 centres as of early 2024, according to NASSCOM. The competition among states reflects a shift: tier-2 cities offer lower real estate costs and less congested infrastructure than saturated metros like Bengaluru. Punjab's focus on commute times highlights how urban mobility has become a key factor in corporate location decisions. Uttar Pradesh's bet on AI aligns with the central government's push for AI centres of excellence announced in the 2024 budget. Karnataka's ability to retain its dominant share will depend on whether its tier-2 cities can match Bengaluru's talent density and ecosystem depth. The next round of GCC investment decisions is expected in the coming quarters as global firms evaluate these alternatives. ## Coverage - bazaar.businesstoday.in Leads with new cities competing for GCC status, reports each state's claims without favouring any This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Karnataka, Lucknow, Mohali, Nasscom, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/mohali-up-karnataka-pitch-for-next-gcc-hub-after-bengaluru/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/mohali-up-karnataka-pitch-for-next-gcc-hub-after-bengaluru/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/