03/08/2026
Women in Valsad, Gujarat climbed into deep wells this summer just for water. The videos went viral, then faded from our feeds.
Around the same time, Gujarat was picked as the site for a massive new data centre, backed by Meta and Reliance.
Two stories. Same state. More connected than they look.
Data centres don’t just run on code, they run on land, power, and huge amounts of water for cooling. And this is happening where heatwaves already cross 50°C and water stress is daily reality, not a headline.
A Cambridge University study found data centres raise nearby temperatures by up to 2°C for kilometers. That’s not a side effect, it’s a crisis stacked on a crisis. The hotter it gets, the more water these centres need to stay cool. 🌡️
It’s not just Gujarat. Within 6 years of India’s national AI policy, 15 states rolled out data centre policies. Only 5 mention the environment. Zero disclosures on water or emissions.
In Telangana, farmers took Microsoft to court over land. Hyderabad’s already water-short, yet Amazon’s expanding there. Pune protested last year, Microsoft picked it anyway.
So here’s the real question: when governments celebrate the next big AI investment, do they tell us what it costs in water, power and land?
AI isn’t weightless. 🤖Next time you hear about a billion-dollar AI project, don’t just ask how many jobs it’ll create. Ask where the water and power will come from.