As Indian cities race to adopt Artificial Intelligence (AI) for smarter governance and urban efficiency, a deeper paradox is emerging.
Urban India is increasingly integrating AI into municipal systems, using algorithms to streamline traffic, optimise street lighting, and reduce inefficiencies in waste collection. AI is projected to help tackle some of the largest carbon-emitting sources in cities. However, the sustainability of such integration is being questioned, particularly as cities like Ahmedabad and Chennai confront escalating water shortages, rising temperatures, and infrastructural strain. The International Energy Agency estimates that by 2030, global data centres fuelled primarily by AI models will consume 945 terawatt-hours of electricity annually, surpassing Japan’s current power usage. In Ireland, data centres already draw as much electricity as all urban housing combined. The data explosion isn’t just power-intensive; it’s water-hungry too. Cooling AI servers demands vast amounts of water, even as many Indian cities face severe heatwaves and water rationing.
Ahmedabad, with a population of over nine million, witnessed 800 heat-related deaths in a single week in May 2010. The tragedy led to India’s first Urban Heat Action Plan, which now limits household water supply to just one hour per day during peak summer. In such contexts, diverting water to cool data farms seems not only unsustainable but also socially unjust. The rise of AI is inadvertently reshaping urban geography. Historically, cities flourished around natural water sourcesn rivers, springs and deltas. But with the digital revolution, infrastructure is now chasing fibre-optic routes and energy grids, rather than rivers and resources. This shift threatens to disconnect cities from the ecosystems that sustain them.
Cities already account for 80% of the world’s GDP and roughly the same share of global greenhouse gas emissions. Urbanisation, especially across Asia and Africa, is expanding at an unprecedented pace. Every week, one million new people are added to the urban population globally. While this growth presents an opportunity for innovation, it also magnifies the risks of climate extremes urban heatwaves in India, flash floods in Southeast Asia, and energy blackouts in Europe. The answer is not to reject AI, but to govern it with foresight. AI should be steered to serve regenerative urban goals supporting water recycling, enabling clean energy microgrids, and forecasting climate extremes. For this, cities need robust digital governance, transparent data protocols, and sustainable energy sources like geothermal or nuclear micro-reactors. Only then can AI become a tool for good not just in theory, but in practice.
If the narrative is to be one of “AI for Good”, the benchmark must be equity, ecology, and endurance. Indian cities, at the frontlines of climate and digital transitions, have the chance to lead by aligning intelligence with resilience.
Also Read :Indias Electric Vehicle Revolution Faster Growth Greener Future Charging Ahead
