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🇳🇵 Nepal /Technology

Nepal wants to become a data centre hub. It has no rules for how

From Kathmandu Post · (4m ago) English Critical tone

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • Nepal aims to become a data center hub, but lacks regulations for such facilities.
  • Residents near an existing data center reported being misled about its construction and suffer from noise and pollution.
  • The government's plan to scale up data centers mirrors the lack of transparency and community consultation seen at the local level.

The Kathmandu Post, as a leading voice in Nepal, highlights a critical disconnect between the nation's burgeoning digital ambitions and its regulatory reality. While the government eyes becoming a data center hub, the ground-level experience of communities near existing facilities paints a starkly different picture. Residents in Lalitpur have spoken out about being deceived regarding the construction of a data center, initially led to believe it was a mere warehouse. This lack of transparency from developers, compounded by inadequate oversight from local authorities, has resulted in significant disturbances, including noise and pollution, directly impacting their quality of life.

They collected signatures from the households during the ground verification (sarjamin) process, saying they were building a warehouse.

— Jyotsna GuptaChairperson of the Ekta Tol Bikash Sanstha in ward 4, describing how residents were misled about the Ncell data center's construction.

This local grievance is not an isolated incident but a potent symbol of the challenges Nepal faces in managing its rapid development. The story of the Ncell data center serves as a microcosm of a larger issue: the potential for unchecked growth to override community well-being and environmental concerns. The government's push for digital infrastructure, while necessary for economic progress, must be balanced with robust legal frameworks and genuine public consultation.

Under Nepal Government rules, any construction project must first have an approved map and neighbours’ consent before its start, so they came to me in my capacity as their sandhiyar.

— Gopal DangolAn adjoining neighbor who gave consent for construction based on documents describing 'shed structures,' only later realizing it was a data center.

From a Nepali perspective, this situation underscores the urgent need for clear guidelines and enforcement mechanisms. The experience of residents like Jyotsna Gupta and Gopal Dangol, who felt unheard and misled, should serve as a wake-up call. The promise of becoming a data center hub cannot come at the cost of local communities' trust and health. The Kathmandu Post believes that sustainable development requires a foundation of transparency, accountability, and respect for citizens' rights, ensuring that progress benefits all Nepalis, not just a select few.

We were not convinced.

— Gopal DangolStating residents' continued opposition to the data center project even after being told it posed no radiation risk.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Kathmandu Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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