India-Russia nuclear ties must be enhanced
The commissioning of the Unit-I of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) on Wednesday has once again touched a new high in the decade-old India-Russia relationship. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alongwith Russian President Vladimir Putin and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, especially dedicating the nuclear plant to the nation, achieves another milestone in the country's annals of nuclear power generation. It is one of the remarkable feats of the Modi Government as in the past since 2009, the project had witnessed a series of protests, violence, numerous sedition cases, accidents, repeated failures and heightened concerns over safety measures. Further, Jayalalithaa also deserves applause for fully supporting the Union Government and for her apt handling of the core concerns of the protesters led by the Peoples Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE). In fact, confidence-building measures undertaken by the Jayalalithaa Government, to ensure that the fears and safety concerns of the people were heeded, has worked positively and helped launching the crucial nuclear plant.
The nuclear power collaboration between India and Russia is a growing sign of friendship of the two world leader's which can be exploited beyond the traditional ties. However, both the Governments must go for an expert analysis of the past protests raised by the PMNAE highlighting the probable woes and tensions of the people of southern Tamil Nadu and bordering villages of Kerala adjacent to the KKNPP. The project eventually triggered the largest anti-nuclear protests in the country mostly inspired by the ideals of the German Greens and its leader Petra Kelly. The PMNAE, spearheaded by activist Udayakumar, had seen the rare convergence of the fishermen from nearby villages, the local residents and surprisingly the church, which generated so much of uproar both at national and international level and it was felt that the Government was not ready for such mass uprising. What generated fears around the KKNPP was the long-delay in execution of the plant and alleged shady deals set by unknown Russian firms supplying critical parts of the same. When it comes to safety norms, prominent global study reports reveal that commissioning experiments alone can issue a guarantee that a nuclear reactor will operate in accordance with design and is capable of responding to anticipated disasters which were mostly raised by PMNAE. Apart from that, the Unit-I of KKNPP attained criticality in July 2013, but it started providing regular power generation early this year. An inordinate delay and an atmosphere of suspicion built around the construction of the KKNNP helped galvanise support for anti-nuclear agitators than the actual cost-benefit analysis of the project. But then, why was it delayed for so longIJ Was there a chance that the Government could have prevented such protestsIJ It is learnt that the Government could have intervened early and allayed fears of the fishing community and other locals. People should have been taken into confidence before they were mobilised by other actors. A delay in commissioning power generation projects like the KKNNP can seriously hamper developmental work of the nation. Therefore, this must be a learning lesson for the Government and it must take precaution while unveiling the next five units of the plant at Kudankulam.