The CPI(M) State committee has demanded that the State government withdraw the subsidies and incentives being extended to the Google data centre project being executed by the Vizag Hyper-scale Data Centre Park Limited (VHDCPL) in the wake of the High Court’s orders.
In a statement on Wednesday, CPI(M) State secretary V. Srinivasa Rao said the government should implement the orders relating to the project coming up in the Adavivaram and Mudusaralova areas of Visakhapatnam rural mandal.
He said the court had made it clear that the construction of the project could proceed at VHDCPL’s own risk until the final verdict. The government should, therefore, withdraw the subsidies and incentives being extended to the project and protect public money, he said.
The CPI(M) also demanded that a high-level expert committee be constituted to assess the project’s impact on water, land and environment, including alleged violations of environmental regulations. The findings should be made public, Mr. Srinivasa Rao said.
Several experts, prominent citizens and residents of Visakhapatnam had already raised concerns over the project, and the government should take these into consideration.
The CPI(M) alleged that the government was using the police and the administrative machinery to proceed with the project without adequately ascertaining the views of people losing their lands.
The party demanded that cases filed by the Simhachalam devasthanam be withdrawn and full rights over their lands be provided to residents of five villages. It also called for gram sabhas to ascertain the views of the affected people before proceeding with the project.
