Farmers Raise Concerns as Google AI Data Centre Construction Rises in Visakhapatnam

A wall of tall blue corrugated iron sheets now hides the land in Tarluvada, a village in Anandapuram mandal on the outskirts of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. Once made of farms and forests, the area is now the site of heavy construction for a hyperscale Google AI data centre. On the nearby hill known locally as Chukka Konda, workers have stripped back a wide slope to red earth and cut it into terraces that stand out against the surrounding green.

Local Tension

Last year, government officials visited the small village with promises of plentiful jobs and opportunities tied to the new American tech corporation project. Today, the mood in the village is uneasy, and many farmers refuse to talk about the development. Left party leaders report they are blocked from meeting locals to understand their problems, while residents who do speak out face police targeting and harassment.

Context

Large technology infrastructure projects often alter local rural landscapes, bringing promises of economic growth alongside immediate social and land-use tensions. Such major industrial shifts regularly spark debates between regional authorities and farming communities over land rights, employment guarantees, and local freedom of speech.