Halt Hyperscale Datacenters and Unsustainable Development
The data centers in Vizag are pushed as development projects at a time we witness resistance at a global scale against permitting and setting them up. Viewing clean air, water, and the environment as basic necessities, Green Visakha called for a round table discussion, in Arilova on 05.07.2026, to voice opinions on the strains placed on natural resources and burdens imposed upon the local communities.
The hyperscale data centers, like the Google AI data center, require massive amounts of GPU (Graphic Processing Unit) and TPU (Tensor Processing Unit) clusters to store, synchronise, and train data at a large scale. In addition to requiring uninterrupted power and water supply. The Green Visakha noted that acts of deforestation and land evening in Arilova had started five months before obtaining the Environmental Clearance; and condemned the lackluster evaluation, as the allotted land rests on Kambalakonda and the catchment area to Mudasarlova reservoir. The arbitrary extension of land assignments to data centers like Sify right next to the Wildlife Sanctuary from what was originally 25 acres to 50 was questioned on its grounds of justification. It also recognised the status of water deficit (of 37%) in the city of Vizag, even prior to the setting up of data centers, and expressed concerns of aggravation of the crisis. As it was noted that upon digging up to 230 feet, not a single drop of water was found for household consumption, putting the extent of the crisis into perspective- in terms of what it means to the local community.
Raja Ram Mohan Roy (President, Green Visakha) noted that “in a Rajya Sabha response, Jal Sakthi Ministry confirmed the state of water stress in India. As Vizag is one of the 30 flagged cities, water allocation to its residents, not data centers should be the primary concern”.
VS Krishna (Coordinator, HRF AP & TS) mentioned that “this is not development. This is destructive expansion”.
Sohan Hatangadi (Environmentalist) added that “data centers financially generate zero (revenue) while simultaneously contributing to immense pollution”.
RKSV Kumar (CITU District Secretary) added that “rights to houses in Ramakrishna Puram are not allotted to this day stating it falls under the catchment area, but the state did not think twice to allot it to a data center”.
Green Visakha condemned the unequal nature of social and ecological costs and privatized profits involving the setting up of data centers, in particular, in geographically vulnerable sites such as Vizag. By acknowledging that an infrastructure-heavy industry such as data centers does not generate employment at par with numbers that are making rounds in the media. The organization resolved to resist the ecologically unsustainable and destructive setting up of data center projects in Vizag under the garb of development, and demanded an immediate halt to the Google data center. The discussion was chaired by Muralidhar (President, JVV AP) with Raja Ram Mohan Roy and Chandraskehar serving as the President and Secretary of Green Visakha respectively. Other attendees included V Krishna Rao, P Shankar Rao, V Narendra Kumar, Sai Teja (SFI District President), Pitta Narayana Murthy, Eashwar Rao, MVV Murthy, Ganesh, Kiran, Sujan, and others.
The event also included children’s artwork on water shortage in relation to the setting up of data centers. Alongside a photobooth depicting handcuffs in the shape of gOOgle in front of prison bars. Posts addressed to Google and Adani were dropped in a post box demanding that they take back their data centers, leaving Vizag to its residents. The event ended with a rally in the premises holding placards and raising slogans against the setting up of data centers in Vizag.