Maharashtra plans expert panel to assess environmental impact of data centres
Mumbai, June 25 (IANS) Maharashtra Industries Minister Uday Samant on Thursday announced that the government will set up a high-level committee under the chairmanship of veteran nuclear scientist Dr Anil Kakodkar to comprehensively study the impact of data centre projects on water, power, the environment, global warming and the livelihoods of local citizens.
Minister Samant made the announcement in the Legislative Council, adding that the government would request Dr Kakodkar to accept the chairmanship of the proposed committee.
The announcement came in response to a calling-attention motion moved by Shiv Sena MLC Manisha Kayande, who drew the government’s attention to the potential environmental and public health impacts of the growing number of data centre projects in the state. She expressed concerns over the massive consumption of water and energy, noise pollution, land requirements, climate change and actual employment generation by these centres.
Responding to the concerns, Minister Samant noted that Maharashtra adopted a Green Data Centre Policy in 2026 and that its provisions needed to be studied thoroughly. The state aims to establish a data centre capacity of 30 to 40 gigawatts (GW) to achieve its “Developed Maharashtra 2027” objective.
However, he assured the House that full care would be taken to ensure that there was no adverse impact on the livelihoods of citizens.
“The proposed committee will include senior officials and experts from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO), municipal corporations and the Department of Industries. Once the committee submits its report, guidelines regarding necessary regulations, environmental norms, tree plantation, e-waste management and water resource conservation for data centre projects will be effectively finalised,” the Minister said.
Minister Samant categorically clarified that drinking water would not be used for data centres. The government’s position is to utilise only tertiary treated water — processed from sewage water — supplied by the Thane, Navi Mumbai and Panvel municipal corporations, as well as CIDCO and agencies in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.
To facilitate this, major companies are making substantial investments in infrastructure. Amazon is investing approximately Rs 500 crore, while Blackstone is spending around Rs 2,000 crore to establish the required water treatment and supply infrastructure, the Minister informed the House.
He further stated that the proposed data centre projects in the Khalapur and Taloja areas require 200 million litres of water, while the project in the Trans Thane Creek industrial area requires 100 million litres.
Since this demand will be met entirely through treated wastewater, local drinking water supplies and agricultural water resources will remain completely unaffected, he said.
During the discussion, several members, including Aniket Tatkare, Sanjay Khodke and Dr Rajeev Poddar, raised demands relating to efficient e-waste management, exploring the use of seawater, assessing financial benefits to local self-governing bodies and studying the experiences of international data centre hubs.
Answering these queries, Samant announced that a team of experts from the state government would be sent to Abu Dhabi and other countries to study the world’s most advanced green data centre technologies.
He reiterated that every data centre in Maharashtra would strictly be a “Green Data Centre”, promising that the government would not compromise on the environment or public interest while pursuing industrial growth and job creation.
–IANS
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