Now Reading: Vizag police deny permission for rally against AI data centres
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Vizag police deny permission for rally against AI data centres
Visakhapatnam police denied permission to environmental NGO Green Visakha to hold a procession on Sunday against proposed hyperscale AI data centres in the city, citing location restrictions. The group had planned to…
The Story in Brief
Visakhapatnam police denied permission to environmental NGO Green Visakha to hold a procession on Sunday against proposed hyperscale AI data centres in the city, citing location restrictions. The group had planned to gather at the Bhagat Singh statue at YMCA junction and proceed to RK Beach, but police said no protest was permitted on Beach Road. After discussions, officers allowed the group only to take a photograph before dispersing.
The protest was against the $15 billion Google-Adani data centre project, which activists say will exacerbate water scarcity, groundwater depletion, and pollution. Police stated citizens must use the designated protest site near the Gandhi statue at the GVMC building. Green Visakha president Rajaramamohan Rai said the organisation would seek permission again. Human Rights Forum state secretary VS Krishna criticised the police action as a curb on democratic rights.
The Indian Opinion
The denial of permission for a peaceful rally on the grounds of a 'no-protest' zone raises serious questions about the right to dissent in a democracy. The police have argued that the gathering was not allowed because it was near a statue of a freedom fighter, but the activists claimed they only wanted to hold a discussion and take a photograph. This is not a question of whether the data centres are good or bad, but whether citizens have the right to express their views without fear of being labelled as protesters. The real test will be whether the police allow a similar gathering at the designated protest site.
Sources (3): thehindu.com, deccanherald.com, indianopinion.org
This story was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 3 sources.
