The corridors of Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi were abuzz with activity as India recently hosted a world summit on artificial intelligence. Thousands of delegates passed by robots, software displays, and startup stalls as some of the most influential leaders in the tech world met in one place. These included Sam Altman of OpenAI and Sundar Pichai of Google.
India declared the AI Impact Summit as a turning point. It was the first time that the summit was organized in a developing nation, which indicated that India was on its way to becoming a leading destination for AI.
Leaders of the Indian government encouraged investment, collaboration, and innovation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the gathering that India viewed artificial intelligence as an opportunity, not a risk.
The optimism is commensurate with the level of investment already being made. Tech giants such as Microsoft and Amazon have committed billions of dollars to cloud infrastructure and AI development in India. Google, for example, is planning a $15 billion AI and data campus in Visakhapatnam, developed in partnership with Adani Group and Bharti Airtel.
However, outside the conference halls, another discussion is gaining momentum. Data centres, which are the foundation of AI infrastructure, are huge water and electricity guzzlers.
Why India’s Data Centre Expansion Needs Clearer Water Policy
Data centres operate 24/7 and require cooling systems that, in turn, require a constant supply of water. The summit, critics argue, paid scant attention to these aspects.
India’s growing data centre industry is already located in areas that are expected to face resource constraints.
In Hyderabad, for example, there is expected to be a critical water shortage in the next two years, even as new data centres are being set up. In Pune, water shortages led to protests last year, while new AI infrastructure projects were cleared.
However, experts point out that there is a lack of clear policies to deal with the issue. The Delhi-based Council on Energy, Environment, and Water has urged the government to make disclosure requirements tougher so that the amount of water and energy that new projects consume can be better understood by the community.
Experts also point out that state governments are competing for investment and are prioritizing economic development over sustainability policies.
Balancing India’s $200 Billion Ambition with Environmental Sustainability
India is home to almost one-twentieth of the world’s data but has only a small portion of the world’s storage capacity.
This is seen as an economic opportunity by the government. The government forecasts that investment in AI, including hardware, software, and services, could exceed $200 billion in the coming years. A global ranking by Stanford University already ranks India among the top three countries in terms of AI competitiveness.
However, environmental projections are a cause for concern. Research cited by NITI Aayog suggests that AI data centres could consume up to 1.7 trillion gallons of freshwater every year. An S&P Global analysis suggests that over 60 percent of India’s data centres could be under high water stress in the current decade.
The international leaders at the summit have recognized similar concerns in their own countries. Canadian AI minister Evan Solomon stated that the public is increasingly asking if data centers increase the price of electricity or put a burden on water resources.
French President Emmanuel Macron and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva were also in attendance, showing the international implications of AI infrastructure.
Why Land Disputes Could Stall of AI Revolution in India?
At the grassroots level, the concerns of the community go beyond the provision of utilities. Researchers at the Digital Empowerment Foundation have found that people living in areas where data centers are proposed are initially concerned about land use.
Farmers in Telangana have already approached the Telangana High Court with a case related to land disputes over a proposed data center project.
The leaders of India hope that the country will become a major force in the development of AI. The summit has demonstrated a strong momentum for this goal. However, as the investment is gaining speed, it is necessary to strike a balance between growth and transparency. The success of the AI plans of India may depend not only on faster servers and increased investments, but also on the management of basic resources.
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