Chennai, Feb 17 : Chairman and Managing Director of the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) Bhuwan Chandra Pathak will soon meet Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary V.Inbai Arul amid growing opposition to the ‘Away from Reactor’ (AFR) facility at Kudankulam nuclear power plant in the state.
The meeting, which is yet to be finalised, is to evolve a strategy to build the AFR without any hurdles in the face of opposition from several corners of the state.
Recently, the NPCIL floated tenders to construct the AFR at units 3 and 4 of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP).
Locals and political leaders have joined the environmentalists to oppose this and the NPCIL chief wants to convince the chief secretary on the important of AFR in any Nuclear power project.
The issue gained momentum after former Chief Minister and AIADMK chief coordinator O.Panneerselvam jumped into the bandwagon and called upon the Chief Minister M.K.Stalin to stall the project.
DMK floor leader in Rajya Sabha and former Union Minister T.R.Baalu has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi stating that the storage of spent nuclear fuel at the nuclear plant site will have adverse consequences for the people and environment.He had also, in the letter, informed that the Supreme Court had categorically said that spent Nuclear fuel should not be permanently stored in the Kudankulam Nuclear plant site.He also mentioned that establishing AFR was against the Supreme Court rules.
Sources in DMK told IANS that Chief Minister Stalin will be writing a letter to the Prime Minister seeking his urgent intervention in the matter.Environmental activists have said that the NPCIL does not have a detailed long-term plan to store spent nuclear fuel except on the possibility of the construction of a Deep Geological Repository (DGR).
The Supreme Court of India had, in 2013, called upon the NPCIL to immediately move ahead to take effective steps for the construction of a permanent DGR at the earliest and to make clear the apprehensions shared by the local people and political leaders.aal/shb/
DMK floor leader in Rajya Sabha and former Union Minister T.R.Baalu wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, stating that storage of spent nuclear fuel on the site of the nuclear plant could have negative consequences for the environment and the people.He was added in the letter advised that the Supreme Court had categorically said that spent Nuclear fuel shouldn’t be stored for a long time in the Kudankulam Nuclear plant site.He added that the idea of establishing AFR was in violation of Supreme Court rules.
Sources in DMK informed IANS that the Chief Minister Stalin will write an open letter to the Prime Minister asking for urgent intervention in the matter.Environmental activists have stated that the NPCIL has no specific long-term plan for the storage of spent nuclear fuel, except for the possibility of the creation of an Deep Geological Repository (DGR).
The Supreme Court of India had, in 2013, called for the NPCIL to immediately begin to take the necessary steps to ensure the creation of an permanent DGR as soon as possible and to express the concerns of the local population and the political leaders.
