Expert group on Kudankulam nuclear project set up

New Delhi, Oct 20: To assuage the fears of the locals and the Tamil Nadu government, the Centre today (Oct 20) announced setting up of a 15-member group of experts over the Kudankulam nuclear plant project.

"We have set up a 15-member group of experts," officials said here.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had last night said that the committee promised by him to convince stakeholders in the Kudankulam nuclear power project would be set up today.

The group of experts from various disciplines such as radiation safety, reactor safety, oncology, fisheries and nuclear waste management will interact with the local population in and around Kudanakulam where two 1000 MW nuclear power plants built with Russian collaboration are in advanced stages of completion.

The project has run into a rash of protests as it approaches final stages of commissioning with concerns being raised over environmental impact and fears of radiation fears in the wake of the Fukushima accident in Japan.

Singh had regretted that his letter to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on the subject had not reached her, an issue on which she had criticised him.

"Well I am sorry. I have seen that comment," he had said when pointed out that Jayalalithaa had stated that she had not received any letter from the Prime Minister about which she had read in newspapers.

At the same time, he had said, "I do feel that we can give reasonable satisfaction to all the stakeholders who are worried about the safety of the atomic energy plant at Kudankulam." Blaming the Centre's "inaction" for the stalemate over the plant issue, Jayalalithaa had said that her government was firm on suspension of the work on the controversial project till people's concerns were addressed.

PTI