Thirst Trap: Water sustainability issues loom over India's booming data centre industry

India's data centre industry is booming, driven by significant investments from companies like Adani Enterprises and tech giants such as Meta and Alphabet. However, this growth raises concerns about the substantial water consumption needed for cooling in water-scarce cities. Operators are adopting alternative cooling technologies like air-cooled chillers to reduce water use. Despite these efforts, India lacks a national policy on data centre water usage. Experts call for sustainable practices to balance industry growth with water conservation.