With the Centre deciding to go ahead with the Jaitapur project, anti-nuclear activists upped the ante accusing the government of "lobbying" and "acting as agents" of global nuclear supplier groups.
With the Centre deciding to go ahead with the atomic power project in Jaitapur, anti-nuclear activists today upped the ante accusing the government of "lobbying" and "acting as agents" of global nuclear supplier groups.
“Yes, the Centre has promised safety and transparency in the nuclear power programme but we want the project to be completely halted as there are serious discrepancies," said
Journalist and activist Praful Bidwai.
The activists had gathered here to observe the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and to deliberate ways to persuade the government to halt the proposed nuclear project in Jaitapur in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra.
Terming the project as "too secretive, too centralised, too expensive and too dangerous," the activists alleged there were a lot of "loopholes" in the project which the government was "deliberately ignoring."
"There are a lot of problems the government is deliberately ignoring. Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Department of Atomic Energy are seen as holy cows and considered sacrosanct. They lack transparency. What we need now is an independent AERB comprising people drawn from various spheres," said Achin Vanaik, Professor, Delhi University.
"It is important to note that nuclear power-related accidents over the past few years have increased. But our government has chosen to ignore all these incidents and put people's lives at risk," said Vanaik.
The government, along with the DAE, is acting as "agents" and "lobbyists" for the global nuclear supplier group, he charged.
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