BharathCloud, India’s sovereign AI cloud provider, signed a memorandum of understanding with the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) in Pune to deliver secure, India-hosted cloud infrastructure to Company Secretaries across the country. Under the agreement, ICSI members will get access to BharathCloud’s cloud services at special pricing for a period of two years. The partnership is designed to help corporate governance and compliance professionals move away from ageing on-premise IT setups toward cloud environments built around India’s data residency and regulatory requirements.
What Is BharathCloud?
BharathCloud is a Hyderabad-based sovereign cloud services provider founded in 2021 by Rahul Takkallapally and Padma Reddy Sama. The company offers a full range of cloud computing services including Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), Software as a Service (SaaS), AI/ML workload support, Kubernetes as a Service (KaaS), and High-Performance Computing (HPC). It also operates Bharath Big Bucket (B3), an AI-powered object storage platform.
BharathCloud positions itself as an Indian alternative to global cloud providers, with a strong focus on data sovereignty meaning that all client data is stored and processed within Indian borders using infrastructure located in domestic data centres. The company serves over 1,000 clients across 20 sectors and has announced a $100 million investment plan over five years to build AI-ready sovereign cloud infrastructure across major Indian cities including Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Delhi NCR, as well as Tier-II and Tier-III locations. Its infrastructure is compliant with global standards such as ISO 27001, TPN, and HIPAA, and is aligned with India’s Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act requirements.
In May 2026, BharathCloud launched its first Cloud Centre at CtrlS Datacenters’ Hyderabad DC1 facility. The company has also partnered with DE-CIX India for interconnection services and appointed JLL as its advisory partner for infrastructure expansion. BharathCloud already has a similar partnership with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), offering discounted cloud services to CA firms and members.
The Institute of Company Secretaries of India: A Profile
The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) is a premier statutory professional body constituted under the Company Secretaries Act, 1980 (Act No. 56 of 1980), an Act of Parliament. It functions under the administrative jurisdiction of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), Government of India, and is responsible for regulating and developing the profession of Company Secretaries in the country.
The Institute was initially formed on 4 October 1968 and later granted statutory status through the 1980 Act. Its headquarters are located at ICSI House, 22 Institutional Area, Lodi Road, New Delhi. ICSI has four Regional Offices in New Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, and Mumbai, along with 73 Chapter Offices across India and four Centres for Corporate Governance, Research and Training (CCGRT). It also maintains six overseas centres in Australia, Canada, Singapore, UAE, UK, and the USA.
ICSI has over 79,000 members and approximately 2.5 lakh students enrolled in its Company Secretary course, making it the largest professional body of Company Secretaries globally. The current President of ICSI is CS Pawan G Chandak. The Institute’s vision is to be a global leader in promoting good corporate governance.
Key Provisions of the MoU
The MoU between BharathCloud and ICSI was signed in Pune and is structured to make cloud adoption practical and accessible for Company Secretaries of all practice sizes.
| Provision | Details |
|---|---|
| Special Pricing | ICSI members get access to BharathCloud services at tailored pricing for two years from the date of the MoU |
| Practice Size Coverage | Pricing is designed for individual practitioners as well as larger professional firms |
| Onboarding and Training | BharathCloud will conduct dedicated sessions to help members deploy and use the cloud environment |
| Remote Access | Members can access practice applications securely from any location |
| Data Security | Encrypted client data storage with automated multi-location backups |
| Managed Infrastructure | Cloud setup that does not require a dedicated IT person to manage |
| Business Continuity | 24/7 technical support and India-hosted data residency |
The services cover reliable remote access to practice applications, encrypted storage for sensitive client data, automated backups, and a cloud environment that eliminates the need for physical servers or complex on-premise IT infrastructure. The goal is to make cloud adoption a straightforward operational decision for Company Secretaries rather than a complex infrastructure project.
Why This Partnership Matters
Company Secretaries handle highly sensitive corporate and compliance-related information, including board meeting records, regulatory filings, audit documentation, and corporate governance data. Storing this data on local servers or with foreign cloud providers carries risks around data breaches, regulatory non-compliance, and business continuity.
This partnership addresses three critical needs for the profession:
Data Residency and Sovereignty. All client data stored on BharathCloud remains within Indian data centres, ensuring compliance with the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023 and other Indian data governance regulations. For professionals dealing with sensitive corporate information, this removes the uncertainty around cross-border data flows.
Operational Efficiency. Cloud infrastructure eliminates the need for physical servers, manual backups, and dedicated IT staff. Small and mid-sized CS firms, which often lack the resources to manage complex IT setups, can now access enterprise-grade infrastructure at predictable pricing.
Business Continuity. With multi-location automated backups and 24/7 support, the risk of data loss from hardware failure, natural disasters, or cyber incidents is significantly reduced. Remote access capabilities also allow Company Secretaries to work from any location, a feature that has become essential for modern professional practice.
The Broader Push for Sovereign Cloud in India
The MoU between BharathCloud and ICSI is part of a larger trend of Indian professionals and institutions shifting toward domestic cloud infrastructure. The government’s Cloud First Policy, part of the MeghRaj initiative led by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), encourages government departments and public sector organisations to adopt cloud computing as the default option. MeitY has empanelled private Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) to offer IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS under public cloud, virtual private cloud, and government community cloud deployment models, with a strict requirement that data remains within Indian borders.
India’s cloud market is growing rapidly, with data centre capacity projected to rise by 77% by 2027 to reach 1.8 GW, according to industry estimates. The push for AI-ready infrastructure, the rollout of 5G, and the proliferation of IoT devices are driving demand for low-latency, localized cloud services. Domestic providers like BharathCloud, CtrlS, Yotta, and ST Telemedia are expanding their data centre footprints to capture this demand.
BharathCloud’s partnership with ICSI follows a similar arrangement with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), indicating a pattern where premier professional bodies are equipping their members with sovereign digital infrastructure. These moves align with India’s broader goal of Atmanirbhar Bharat in the digital technology domain, reducing dependence on foreign cloud platforms for handling sensitive professional and corporate data.
Key Takeaways
- BharathCloud signed an MoU with the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) in Pune to provide secure, India-hosted cloud infrastructure to Company Secretaries.
- ICSI members will receive access to BharathCloud services at special pricing for two years, with plans designed for both individual practitioners and large firms.
- BharathCloud was founded in 2021 in Hyderabad by Rahul Takkallapally and Padma Reddy Sama and serves over 1,000 clients across 20 sectors.
- ICSI is a statutory body under the Company Secretaries Act, 1980, functioning under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, with headquarters in New Delhi and over 79,000 members.
- The partnership covers encrypted data storage, automated multi-location backups, remote access, 24/7 support, and onboarding training with no dedicated IT staff required.
- BharathCloud has a similar existing partnership with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), reflecting a broader shift toward sovereign cloud adoption by Indian professional bodies.
