Google heralds its biggest-ever investment in India with a US$15 billion data center project,
but local activist groups are worried about its environmental impact
By Munsif Vengattil and Aditya Kalra / Reuters
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Work to build Google’s planned Indian data center hub is in full swing, with a hillside above the site stripped to red earth and terraced into steps, but mounting opposition from environmentalists is creating hurdles for the US tech giant’s US$15 billion project.The southern state of Andhra Pradesh, governed by an ally of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has hailed the project as historic and transformational, has denied allegations that the project was fast-tracked without weighing risks to water supplies and wildlife. However, the growing opposition could become an early test for Google’s biggest-ever investment in India, which is facing several legal challenges over its impact on water supplies and proximity to a wildlife sanctuary that is home to leopards and pangolins.
