AI Needs More Than Data & Power: Is Water India’s Next Hidden Cost?

**India’s Rapid Expansion of Data Centres Raises Water‑Use Concerns**

*New Delhi, 7 September 2026* – India’s data‑centre capacity has grown from about 375 MW in 2020 to roughly 1,575 MW in 2026, according to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. The government says the sector is expanding beyond traditional hubs such as Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Delhi‑NCR and Jamnagar into states including Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal.

A 2026 assessment by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) estimates that India’s data centres used approximately 150 billion litres of water annually in 2025. The report warns that this could more than double by 2030, when installed capacity could reach 4.5–6.5 GW. Mumbai currently accounts for roughly a quarter of the country’s data‑centre facilities, followed by Chennai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.

The figures refer to all data‑centre activity, not just artificial‑intelligence (AI) workloads. AI models require dense concentrations of processors that generate substantial heat, which must be removed continuously. Depending on the cooling system, water can be used directly through evaporative cooling or indirectly through the electricity and manufacturing supply chains that support the facility.

A July 2026 study published in *Water Research* estimated that the global water footprint of AI could reach 4.2–6.6 billion cubic metres annually by 2027. The researchers identified three major components: water consumed at data centres for cooling, water associated with electricity generation, and water embedded in semiconductor manufacturing. They noted that two‑thirds of data centres built after 2022 are located in water‑stressed regions.

**Local protests highlight water‑use concerns**

In Thane, residents and environmental groups staged protests in July and August over a proposed Amazon data centre covering roughly 53 acres. Protesters, led by the citizen group Wake Up Thanekar, argued that the facility could require at least 12 million litres of water per day and would place additional pressure on local water and electricity supplies. They also raised concerns about heat, noise, traffic, tree loss and the classification of data centres as essential services.

Amazon has disputed the water‑diversion concern, stating that its Indian data centres do not use local water or power sources and that it complies with environmental requirements. The company also claims that its operations in India are “water positive,” meaning it returns more water to local communities than it consumes.

In Visakhapatnam, environmental groups and residents opposed a proposed $15 billion Google data‑centre hub being developed with the Adani Group. Activists organised marches and awareness campaigns, highlighting the city’s existing water supply deficit. According to Reuters, Visakhapatnam receives about 410 million litres of water per day against a requirement of 480 million litres, and rationing is common. The project has faced legal challenges over its environmental impact and proximity to the Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary, located about 860 metres away. Three cases have been filed before the National Green Tribunal, and a public interest litigation has been heard by the Andhra Pradesh High Court.

Google has said it will use advanced air cooling to protect local water resources, while the state has rejected allegations that the project would divert water meant for rural or residential use.

**Regulatory context**

The Indian environment ministry has clarified that AI data centres do not, by themselves, require a separate environmental clearance under the 2006 Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) notification. However, large data centres falling within specified building or township thresholds do require clearance, during which freshwater availability, water balance, greywater generation and recycling can be examined.

**Geographic distribution**

Established hubs remain in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru, while emerging destinations such as Visakhapatnam are being positioned for the next wave of investment. Many of these locations already experience water stress, groundwater depletion, erratic rainfall or competing urban and industrial demand.

The debate in India is not whether a single AI query consumes a glass of water, but whether the cumulative demand of millions of prompts, billions of computations and hundreds of new megawatts of computing capacity will create a water demand that is accounted for before the servers arrive, rather than after residents begin asking where their water has gone.

Article and image source: thebetterindia.com