Monday 29 July 2013

Kudankulam N-Power Plant: Fearing a necessary evil

With less than three weeks for the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) to start production, the protests from the people in and around the reactor is a clear sign that the government has failed to allay their fears of a catastrophe. With India’s energy needs growing by the day, there is no option but to tap into the available energy sources. This, however, should not be at the cost of great environmental damage and human life. Energy generation using nuclear power has always been contentious because of the great dangers it involves. Accidents at nuclear power plants, be it the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant disaster or the Three Mile Island or Chernobyl or the Rawatbhata nuclear plant leak in 2012, have turned the public against this source of energy.

For India, to remain and progress on its economic trajectory, power generation is essential and with a dwindling supply of coal, coupled with the rising prices of oil imports, the government is forced to turn to other sources to meet the ever-growing energy needs. The reliance on alternative sources of cleaner energy have been a failure due to several reasons, like the lack of ideal conditions for tapping wind energy or the government’s failure to give solar power generation the required thrust through incentives and better technology. It is this energy vacuum that nuclear power fills. As noted by MS Swaminathan earlier this year, there was a greater need for better communication between the people and scientists, which to a very great extent will help in removing most of the fears surrounding nuclear power plants. Though prominent personalities in the field of atomic energy, like MR Srinivasan, former Atomic Energy Commission chairman, have been reiterating that KNPP is the ‘safest nuclear plant in the world’, the government has not been able to spread the message successfully.
The protests cannot be overlooked by any government because ensuring the peace and safety of the people is its duty. The allegations that corruption, linked to the Russian firm involved in the construction of KNPP, which is  has led to the procurement of substandard equipment is yet to be addressed to the satisfaction of the local communities that fear the safety of their lives. Through effective communication and by ensuring the highest of safety standards, the government and the people can have a win-win situation. The question is will the government wake up to such a need.

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