Andhra Pradesh IT Minister Nara Lokesh defended the state government’s decision to establish data centres in Visakhapatnam, saying deliberate misinformation was being spread over their environmental and water requirements. Responding to a question raised by Jana Sena MLA Lokam Naga Madhavi in the Assembly, Minister Lokesh said Google’s decision to invest in Visakhapatnam had triggered wider interest from other IT companies in the city.
Minister Lokesh said data centres are critical to the AI-driven digital economy and India’s data sovereignty, particularly amid emerging geopolitical challenges. He explained that once the proposed data-centre ecosystem reaches the targeted 6.5 GW capacity, it is estimated to require around 3 TMC of water annually based on current technology, while stressing that newer cooling technologies are expected to reduce water consumption further.
He said water for data centres would come from the industrial allocation of Polavaram water, without diverting water meant for the city’s residents. Minister Lokesh said the government is committed to supplying Visakhapatnam’s urban water requirements through Polavaram, with gravity-based supply expected within 18 months. Dedicated pipelines would be provided for data centres, he added.
Comparing water consumption, Minister Lokesh said a 1 GW thermal power plant consumes nearly 10 times more water annually than a data centre, questioning why protests over water usage were focused only on data centres.
Minister Lokesh also said Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu had set a clear ceiling of 6.5 GW for data-centre allocations, and declared that the target has now been fully achieved. He said the government would prioritise companies that demonstrate strong environmental responsibility.