YSRCP slams Andhra CM for 'hiding' Adani deal behind Google data centre

Visakhapatnam, Oct 14 (PTI) YSRCP senior leader Gudivada Amarnath on Tuesday accused Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu of "misleading" the public over tech giant Google decision to set up a USD 15 billion gigawatt-scale Artificial Intelligence data centre in Visakhapatnam, while "hiding" Adani Group's name in the project.

The southern state and Google inked the pact in New Delhi in the presence of CM Naidu, Google Cloud chief executive Thomas Kurian, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and others.

"This so-called Google Data Centre project is nothing but a deliberate attempt by Naidu to mislead the people of Andhra Pradesh," said Amarnath, addressing a press conference here.

The former minister alleged that the project portrayed as a Google investment is actually a joint venture with Adani Group whose name was "deliberately hidden" to avoid scrutiny.

This is not a Google project as claimed by Naidu, he said, adding that it is an Adani data centre whose foundation was already laid during YS Jagan Mohan Reddy's tenure as CM between 2019 and 2024 with transparent employment-linked approvals.

Questioning the economic logic of the deal, he asked how the state could justify offering Rs 22,000 crore in subsidies for the "creation of 200 jobs", citing reports from a vernacular newspaper.

Amarnath said that data centres "do not generate significant employment globally," noting that even Sify Technologies chairman had acknowledged this matter recently.

He asserted that during the previous YSRCP government, "Adani was asked to build IT towers and create 25,000 jobs as part of a broader IT ecosystem model".

The former minister asked, "If employment generation was truly the goal, why didn't Naidu demand a Google Development Centre instead of handing over land, power and subsidies to corporates?" According to Amarnath, the agreement extends massive incentives, including 500 acres of land at 25 per cent rebate, Rs 2,200 crore capital subsidy, Rs 1,000 crore annual power subsidy, 15-year electricity duty waiver and 20-year transmission charge waiver.

He claimed that the project would consume one million units of power per hour - equivalent to Visakhapatnam's entire city demand and 5 TMC of water from Polavaram, raising serious concerns over resource allocation.

Amarnath criticised the project as an instance of "corporate exploitation" backed by Naidu, alleging that Vizag's resources were being handed over without generating jobs, revenue or public benefit.

The AI hub at Visakhapatnam will be Google's largest outside the US and include a data centre fuelled by clean energy and a fibre-optic network.

Business tycoon Gautam Adani said his company AdaniConneX would partner with Google on the project, along with Bharti Airtel, India's second-largest mobile operator.

CM Naidu said the state government contacted Google immediately after coming to power and pursued the tech giant relentlessly, culminating in a USD 15 billion investment in data centres.

"As soon as the coalition government (NDA alliance) came to power, we contacted Google. We could reach the target only with relentless follow-up," Naidu said in an interaction with MPs, MLAs, and TDP leaders after returning from New Delhi, according to a press release.

With the establishment of Google AI data centres in Visakhapatnam, India will witness rapid growth in sectors such as education, health, and agriculture, the CM added.

Calling it a breakthrough for promoting Visakhapatnam as a major IT hub, he said IT Minister Nara Lokesh played a key role in bringing Google to the city.

Naidu urged party leaders to raise awareness among people about the upcoming Google AI data centre in Visakhapatnam.

According to the chief minister, Google AI data centres will have a transformative effect on the port city similar to Microsoft’s impact on Hyderabad years ago.

"The entry of Microsoft changed the IT scenario in Hyderabad, and now Google AI data centres will bring an AI revolution to Visakhapatnam," he said. PTI MS STH KH