Ahmedabad: Global companies looking beyond established technology hubs are increasingly turning to Ahmedabad-GIFT City, drawn by lower costs, a large talent pool and GIFT City’s financial-services ecosystem. The corridor could attract 40-50 new global capability centres (GCCs), generating demand for 4-6 million sq ft of Grade A office space and more than 50,000 high-skilled jobs, according to ‘Ahmedabad: New Phase of Urban & GCC Growth’, a DevX-Anarock report.India has more than 1,700 GCCs employing nearly 1.9 million professionals, with the number expected to cross 2,400 by 2030. As established hubs expand, companies are increasingly evaluating Tier-II cities for talent, cost and operational resilience.Ahmedabad’s net effective office occupancy cost of Rs 147 per sq ft is the lowest among the major markets covered. The city has a 90,000-95,000 technology talent pool and produces 55,000-60,000 fresh graduates annually. Attrition stands at 7-12%.“Global enterprises are making location decisions based not only on cost, but on access to skilled talent, operational resilience and the ability to scale over the long term,” said Umesh Uttamchandani, MD of Dev Accelerator Ltd.Ahmedabad is already home to more than 35 GCCs and about 3,700 technology firms. Its Grade A office stock is nearly 26 million sq ft, while GIFT City adds 4.1 million sq ft. The banking, financial services & insurance (BFSI) sector accounts for more than half of Ahmedabad’s office leasing, strengthening GIFT City’s role as a financial-services anchor.“As enterprises look beyond traditional Tier-I markets, cities that combine talent availability, infrastructure readiness, business-friendly policies and cost competitiveness are emerging as the next engines of commercial real estate growth,” said Anuj Puri, chairperson of Anarock Group.The report also projects 1-1.5 million sq ft of flex and managed-office demand across GIFT City, SG Highway and western Ahmedabad.But the market faces supply risks. Ahmedabad’s Grade A vacancy stood at 31.3% in 2025, against 16.6% in GIFT City. The report also flags dependence on BFSI and domestic occupiers, limited large global technology presence, traffic constraints and the concentration of about 35% of upcoming supply in GIFT City.
