Karnataka's data centres 'guzzling water and energy', state reviewing its policy: Priyank Kharge in Assembly

Bengaluru: Karnataka is reviewing its policy on data centres amid concerns over huge environmental costs, particularly their water and energy needs, IT/BT Minister Priyank Kharge told the Assembly on Wednesday.

Priyank said this in response to a question by Doddaballapur BJP MLA Dheeraj Muniraj, who said Bengaluru was losing out on data centres as companies were moving to other Indian cities. He urged the government to set up data centre parks, especially in his Doddaballapur constituency.

“We have 32 private data centres functioning in the state. We already have a data centre policy, which we’re reviewing,” Priyank said.

“Data centres are a necessary evil. Data centres are needed for AI, machine learning and emerging technologies. But data centres are also heavy water and energy guzzlers,” the minister said.

Explaining the economics of data centres, Priyank said: “One megawatt needs about Rs 70 crore. One acre can yield one megawatt. We have to spend 25 million litres per megawatt per year for one data centre. Five questions on ChatGPT will consume 500 ml of water.”

However, new technologies have come that involve using treated water at data centres, Priyank said. “That’s why we’ll relook at our policy, which is 2-3 years old,” he said.

The government, Priyank said, is looking at a “sustainable data centre” policy. “Our focus is on Mangaluru and the coastal areas. Hyperscale data centres won’t suit Bengaluru, which doesn’t have a port and faces shortage of water,” he said, adding that data centres required above 40 megawatt power will be hyperscale.

Priyank said he is talking to private companies about laying sub-sea cables in the coastal region. “I wrote to the telecom ministry and sought a sub-sea landing at Mangaluru. They said they’d provide assistance if private companies do it,” he said.

Earlier, Dheeraj pointed out that Bengaluru faced a shortage of data centres. “The government hasn’t set up dedicated data centre parks because of which large enterprises are leaving Bengaluru,” he said. Bengaluru is ranked fifth after Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Delhi when it comes to data centres, the MLA said.

“Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Meta, Alibaba, Tencent, Oracle, Apple, NTT -- all of them have offices in Bengaluru. Their data centres should be retained in Bengaluru,” Dheeraj said, adding that the government should provide data centre facilities at the upcoming KWIN City near Doddaballapur where 6,000 acres are being acquired.