Google's US$15bil India Data Centre Battles Water, Wildlife Concerns

Google's US$15 billion data centre project in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh is facing several legal challenges over its impact on water supplies and its proximity to a wildlife sanctuary that is home to leopards and pangolins.

The state, governed by an ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has hailed the project as historic and transformational, has denied allegations that it was fast-tracked without weighing risks to water and wildlife. But the growing opposition could become an early test for Google's biggest-ever India investment.

In recent weeks, activists and children have marched in Visakhapatnam city holding banners saying "We cannot drink DATA" and painting handcuffs on the Google logo, social media posts show. On Sunday, Reuters attended a public gathering where activists chalked out door-to-door awareness campaigns and beach protests.

"Development should not be at the cost of livelihood of the people," said Raja Rama Mohan Roy, founder of non-profit Green Visakha, who presented statistics on the city's stressed water supply.

The government says the city receives 410 million litres of water a day from reservoirs and rivers against a requirement of 480 million. Rationing is common in the city of 2.5 million people.

The state's top court on Monday asked the government to defend against allegations by activist group Jal Biradari, which says the project will strain water availability by stressing a nearby reservoir. The Andhra Pradesh High Court will next hear the public interest litigation on Aug 24.

The state told Reuters the activists' concerns were incorrect and misleading, but said it was open to feedback. "Such protests are their democratic right. In case any of these claims are legitimate, the government is committed to engage and provide factual clarifications and suitable redressal," it said.

Google said the project would be developed in line with applicable laws and would implement "advanced air cooling to protect vital local water resources", plus sound-dampening measures to ensure "we are a quiet, unobtrusive neighbour".

The litigation also raises concerns over construction and noise affecting the Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary, located just 860m away. The state said the site was farther away than the law requires.

Three more cases were filed at India's environmental court by the Human Rights Forum demanding a halt, arguing the state cleared the project without properly assessing the impact of drawing from a rural drinking-water scheme. The state said no water for rural or residential purposes would be used, and the nearby reservoir would not be tapped.

Google has partnered with billionaire Gautam Adani's group to build the project, seen creating up to 188,000 jobs. Adani did not respond to queries. Rapid data centre buildouts face pushback worldwide; in the US, opponents held 142 protests across 42 states in July.