Citizens oppose proposed data centres, beach shacks in Vizag

A citizens’ meeting in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday voiced opposition to the proposed data centres and beach shacks.

Kunche Sridhar, national general secretary of the Centre for Protection of Democratic Rights & Secularism (CPDRS), expressed concern about the potential impact of data centres on human life and the environment.

He questioned government subsidies and tax concessions, and said construction jobs would be temporary, with only a few hundred jobs remaining after completion.

He said hyperscale AI data centres could reduce data-transfer latency to a few microseconds, which, according to him, had little civilian benefit but could have applications in warfare. He also questioned the allocation of land, water and electricity to such facilities for private profit.