Environmentalists and former bureaucrats pass the Visakhapatnam Declaration demanding an immediate halt to mega AI data centres to protect local water and power supplies

A national-level public convention organised by citizen collective Green Visakha at the Alluri Vignana Kendram in Visakhapatnam has formally passed the "Visakhapatnam Declaration", demanding an immediate freeze on all government permissions and construction work for proposed artificial intelligence data centres. The gathering brought together key public figures, including retired Union Power Secretary and former IAS officer E.A.S. Sarma, Madras High Court advocate D. Nagasailaja, cyber and energy researcher Sagar Dhara, retired irrigation chief engineer U. Narayana Raju, Human Rights Forum Telugu states representative V.S. Krishna, and former municipal corporator Dr. B. Ganga Rao. The speakers emphasized that while they do not oppose digital technology, the government cannot surrender vast public resources and democratic rights to private corporations without independent checks and public accountability.
The declaration demands that not a single approval be sanctioned until independent and comprehensive environmental, hydrological, and social impact assessments are carried out. Speakers raised serious alarms over plans to build massive data centre complexes with a combined capacity of nearly 6,500 megawatts in the Visakhapatnam region. Running and cooling such massive computing facilities requires huge volumes of water, raising fears about diversions from local reservoirs and the Polavaram canal water budget at a time when North Andhra already faces drinking water stress. On the electricity front, experts warned that diverting 6,500 MW of uninterrupted power to private server facilities will overload the state grid, with high power purchase costs ultimately being passed onto common households and small businesses in the form of higher electricity tariffs. To prevent this, the forum demanded the immediate creation of an independent committee featuring public representatives to conduct comprehensive audits of power and water resources.
The declaration strongly condemned government secrecy and legal violations in handing out concessions. The forum urged the administration to immediately publish full details of all signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs), non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), land allotments, power and water supply guarantees, and government subsidies in both Telugu and English. Legal experts pointed out that multiple clearances have bypassed mandatory Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) and statutory public opinion hearings, demanding that any approvals given in violation of environmental laws be canceled immediately. The speakers also called for an immediate stop to the forced acquisition of assigned lands belonging to Dalits, Adivasis, and small farmers, demanding that land rights be restored to affected families. Furthermore, the declaration denounced digital surveillance, online censorship, and the police action taken against peaceful demonstrations, asserting that automated server halls generate minimal local employment compared to the massive public land, water, and power subsidies given away to private corporations.