An activist stands behind a banner during the People's Convention on AI Data Centers event in Visakhapatnam in India's Andhra Pradesh state. (AFP pic)VISAKHAPATNAM: Handcuffs encircle Google's logo on one campaign poster, while another warns that people "cannot drink data", as opposition mounts to the tech giant's planned AI mega-facility in India.
Excavators have swung into action, clearing forest and farmland on the southeast coast for the US$15 billion construction of Google's largest data centre outside the US.
The project at Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh state, a port often called Vizag, is championed by India as a cornerstone of its technological ambitions.
But many residents fear the data centre -- one of several huge new tech sites in Vizag -- will strain water and power resources, damage the environment and bring too few jobs in return.
