No need to worry, says PM on Kaiga atomic plant incident

Prime minister Manmohan Singh has allayed any fears of radioactive contamination in the wake of the Kaiga nuclear plant incident and said an investigation is on.

"There is nothing to worry," he told journalists accompanying him on board his special aircraft while returning from the two-nation tour of the US and Trinidad and Tobago late last night.

He was responding when asked to comment on the incident of radioactive contamination of a water cooler at the high-security Kaiga nuclear plant in Karnataka.

Singh said a probe is being conducted into the incident.

About 50 employees of the plant were exposed to radiation in the early hours of November 24 but authorities have asserted that it was not because of any leakage or accident but that some disgruntled employee could have contaminated the water.

Prithviraj Chavan, minister of state in the Prime Minister's Office and in-charge of Department of Atomic Energy, said the government was taking the issue "very seriously" as it was "breach of some security measures".

He said, "All agencies are looking into the matter. Somebody from the lab, who had access to the water cooler, had done it between between 3am and 6am (of November 24)."