Aaditya Thackeray has opposed the proposed Thane data centre and the city’s internal circular metro project, raising concerns over land use, water consumption, noise, diesel storage and the cutting of about 3,500 trees.
Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Tuesday said the proposed Thane data centre should not be built in the city’s central area and demanded that it be shifted to an MIDC-designated “red zone”. He also opposed the proposed internal circular metro project and called on residents to organise against both developments.
Thackeray made the remarks while interacting with residents near the proposed data centre site at Balkum. According to the report, the first and second phases of the 22-storey data centre are planned across 53 acres. Thackeray said the project could have consequences for noise levels, heat, water use and the surrounding environment.
He claimed that large quantities of water would be required for cooling the facility and that about five lakh litres of diesel would be stored for generators. He also questioned how residents would be able to live in the area if the facility generated noise levels of up to 90 decibels continuously. The report did not include a response from the project developer or the relevant planning and environmental authorities to these claims.
Thackeray further argued that data generated at the facility would be used primarily in other countries and questioned the project’s wider benefit to India. He said the data centre should instead be moved to an MIDC red zone. He also warned that if his party returned to power, it would remove the project from the proposed site.
The opposition comes as some residents and social organisations have begun protesting the data centre and the proposed internal circular metro project. The metro plan has drawn particular concern over its reported impact on tree cover. Thackeray said preparations were under way to cut around 3,500 trees and criticised what he described as increasing concretisation in the name of development.
He linked the two projects to a broader debate over how Thane should manage infrastructure growth, construction and environmental concerns. Thackeray said the city was known for its trees and argued that development should be sustainable. He also accused the current economic approach of favouring contractors and builders, though the report did not provide supporting evidence for that allegation.
The proposed projects’ final environmental conditions, construction schedule, tree-transplantation or felling permissions, water requirements and official responses were not specified in the report. The next steps will depend on decisions by the authorities responsible for the data centre site and the internal circular metro project, as well as any further engagement with residents and civic groups.
