The Andhra Pradesh High Court has instructed Vizag Hyperscale Data Centre Park, an Adani Group company, to proceed with the construction of its data centre in Visakhapatnam at its own risk. The court cautioned that this risk includes possible unfavourable outcomes in the ongoing writ petition concerning the project.
This observation came in the ongoing case of Bolisetty Satyanarayana v The State of Andhra Pradesh and Ors. Bolisetty Satyanarayana filed a petition before the high court, expressing concerns about environmental degradation arising from the proposed project.
Satyanarayana submitted that necessary permissions from the authorities had been sought on misstatements. He argued that the proposed project is classed as “category A,” which requires environmental clearances before beginning any construction.
Satyanarayana also submitted that the project is located within 1 kilometre of a wildlife sanctuary. As per law, all construction in the area is prohibited, and even if a project has to be raised within 5 kilometres of the sanctuary, only the Union of India can give the required permissions.
This ruling has significant implications for the balance between environmental protection and developmental projects in the coastal region of Andhra Pradesh. It underscores the critical need for adherence to environmental regulations.