India allays Sri Lanka's concerns over Kudankulam nuke plant

India today assured Sri Lanka that the safety measures instituted at the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in Tamil Nadu are of the highest order and there is no threat of radiation from the atomic unit.

India's High Commission in a statement also said a Sri Lankan delegation will visit India in the coming months to discuss areas of potential cooperation, including the area of nuclear safety.

"The relevant issues are being addressed in the spirit of close and friendly relations existing between India and Sri Lanka," the statement said.

"The Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant is a state-of-the-art plant that is compliant with the highest safety standards available in the nuclear industry today. The safety measures instituted at the plant are of the highest order," it said.

Sri Lanka in the recent past had expressed concerns over radiation affects reaching its coastal areas from the Kudankulam nuclear power plant and threatened to approach the International Atomic Energy Authority over the issue.

All nuclear power plants in India are capable of managing the radioactive wastes generated at these sites. Each of them has adequate facilities for handling, treatment and disposal of such waste, in line with international standards, it said.

According to the statement, establishment and verification of appropriate emergency response plans is a mandatory prerequisite for all nuclear power plants in India and the preparedness of the agencies involved is verified through periodic exercises.

The National Disaster Management Authority has drawn up a holistic and integrated programme for 'Management of Nuclear and Radiological Emergencies', it said.

India is party to the Convention on Nuclear Safety (1994), Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident (1986) and the Convention on Assistance in the case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency and is fully aware of and complies with its obligations under these conventions.