Nedumaran says he shouldn't allow himself to be used as a tool
Tamil Nationalist Movement leader P. Nedumaran has condemned the Central Government's efforts to use former President of India, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, as mediator to talk to the protestors in Kudankulam to make them withdraw the protest. The former President has volunteered to talk with the leaders of the agitation to resolve the issue.
Addressing a protest meeting against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant Project here on Saturday, Mr. Nedumaran said, “Mr. Abdul Kalam is a nice man and we have great respect for him. But he has a greater responsibility when it comes to Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project and should not let himself become a tool in this gamble where thousands of people live in fear.”
He further said that the continuous protests by the people in Idinthakarai had led to awareness among a large number of people which had led to protests across the State.
He also said that according to experts, if there was a blast in the Kudankulam plant it would affect the nearby district of Madurai as also Thiruvananthapuram.
He condemned the Centre for going ahead with the project even after the Tamil Nadu Cabinet passed a resolution urging the Centre to halt the work on the KKNPP until the fears of local population over the safety of the plant were allayed. Mr. Nedumaran said that the protests would continue till the project was abandoned by the Centre.
Henri Tiphagne, executive director, People's Watch said that the government was trying to suppress the democratic forms of protest against the nuclear power project.
The protest was organised by People's Movement Against Nuclear Energy and People's Watch.
Comments:
Its a pity that there is so much said against the project. I honestly
feel going nuclear is the only way we can take the country forward.
They give the examples of Maharashtra and Bengal going against it.
which is absurb. We cannot follow them and commit a blunder.
Accepted.. there is a risk involved... but that applies to everything
in life.... nothing is 100 percent sure or safe in here. By not going
nuclear we are committing a crime against our future generation. We
cannot think about the accident which may or may not happen one day
and lose what is the prime need of the day. Give it a thought., one
fine morning our future generation will wake up and find that all the
natural fuel reserves are no more there ., and they will blame us for
not doing anything about it.
I have been hearing about the project and the progress from my childhood. Why sudden protests? It is evident that there is a strong motive behind this. Wiser approach for those leading the protest would be to demand the safety measures, understand, take to people and accept/reject. At least government and the community will take informed decision together. Sad state of affairs!
Opposing anything and everything has become a style. One must listen to independent experts. The problem is trust deficit between people and the Government, and this deficit is widening each day with break out of new scam and dishonesty of the politicians. But the fact is that the nuclear power is the best and cleanest way to generate power after Solar. The villagers must see reasons and allow the plant to commission. They should not allow themselves to be played in the hands of few self-styled nuclear experts and environmentalists. Please think...
I think people will not realise the importance of nuclear energy until petrol price per litre runs into 3 digit figures and have power cuts throughout summer.
Nuclear power is a safe clean alternative to coal and oil. People have been misled on the issue of nuclear power.Kalpakkam withstood the 2004 South Asian Tsunami. Even in the Japanese Earthquake, much of the death and disaster was caused by the earthquake and Tsunami not the meltdown of Fukushima. I hope people realize before they condemn themselves to darkness and backwardness for decades to come, till someone actually figures an alternative.
I am a retired Nuclear Engineer from USA. I have worked in the areas of Nuclear Safety, Nuclear Waste management, and Nuclear Accident analysis. It was proved that water cooled reactors are very safe. It is only required that the Nuclear Reactor operators are to be trained thoroughly. During a melt down accident, the fuel melts and forms ceramic compounds. Severe fuel Meltdown Experiments in the US indicated that the release would be minimal. As for the waste disposal,a waste form was designed that could be deposited deep in to the earth. All tests indicated that the waste form would meet all nuclear standards for safe deposition. In general, people are afraid due to lack of knowledge, or having half knowledge in the area of safety in Nuclear power plants, just enough knowledge to intimidate ignorant and naive locals. Nothing is 100% safe. How many people are dying on roads every day due to motor vehicle accidents.
While appreciating the TNM leader's approach to get justice to the people affected, it would be unwise to thwart the sincere efforts of respected leader Dr.Kalam who has volunteered to help natives not as a mediator but as a scientist who is aware of the facts. It is high time for all political leaders to sort out the matter at once and arrive at an unanimous decision so that TN gets advantage in power sector.
We owe it to the future generation to leave this earth a safe place to live. In the name of immediate development, imagine Nuclear energy Plants dotting the landscape of Indian sub continent some 50 to 60 years from now, a time span that is infinitely small in our mother earth's evolutionary calendar, the material fatigue over this period itself will cause malfunctioning of the plants; add to this the natural and man made calamities that are imminent considering the threat posed by increasing incidences of interference with Nature, again in the name of development and the proliferating number of disillusioned people who are increasingly criminal minded. Therefore it is not a question of whether but when such a disaster will strike. As responsible earth dwellers, we should not plan to achieve short term successes putting the posterity to risks but need to find safe options that would sustain long term development synergistic with Nature's regeneration cycles.
In good old days people opposed setting up of Power Plants to generate power from potential energy of stored up water in a dam and the argument was after power generation the water will become unsuitable for agriculture. People want satellite TV and don't hesitate to use mobile phones for day to day communication. There are reports of danger to human health due to mobile phones. Can we stop using mobiles altogether? Of all the power plants in India, Kudankulam NPP is the safest. The local leaders are misguiding gullible population for selfish ends and are being externally funded. How can an illiterate or semi literate population understand the intricacies of a Nuclear Power Plant? Enough politics have been played in this matter. Central Govt and State Govt has a responsibility to see that liberty to protest is not exceeded beyond a point that will be harmful to the nation and set a bad precedent.
What is the alternative? Solar & Wind is no where near to satisfy our energy needs. As per your argument we should also stop consuming coal & oil based energy as that is also a interference with our Nature. After 50-60 years, when there is no coal, no oil, what will be your answer to your children?
As an energy professional, and a responsible citizen one should think of long term repercussions - let us not forget that we are the most densely populous areas and don't have the infrastructure or coping mechanism to avert or react in an adverse situation. Prosperity cannot be at the cost of basic safety. When the western world hesitates to go forward with nuclear, with all it's safeguards and proven systems what makes us think we can overcome this with or current response system? On a different note but similar context, victims if the Bhopal tragedy to date suffer - and this nuclear venture has still not seen a coherent redressal policy in case of any mishap.Let's not create a bigger problem in the name of solving another. And really, let's not call it the only alternative.
1. The way this crisis is handled by the Nuclear Power Corporation and the UPA, it looks like a lot could be improved in terms of risk & crisis management. The recent experiences in the nuclear power & oil industry accidents show, stakeholder management (local, regional and national) needs lot more attention. 2. Safety risk management is not just about getting assurance on the design from the vendor, operating company or well known public figures including scientists. It is more about how the on going operating procedures that involve the local community are handled, apart from the in-plant safety. A major portion of the off-plant procedures involve periodic drill, communication & media management, escalation process. Also, the legal process need to include provision for compensation during drills (if people have to stay away from work) apart from insurance for contingent risk
Tamil Nadu government buys electricity @ 17 rupees per unit. It will cost couple more to produce the same with solar power which is clean energy.Why should innocent peoples lives be put on risk when you can get energy without any risk whatsoever?
Bring all agitating parties on negotiating table. Let them present their anguish and expert give them proper answer. All these events has to be telecasted on live. so that we could avoid later somersault statements.
India has no other viable option for large scale energy generation except for nuclear power -- the world has no other viable option either. France is close to 100% nuclear; Canada has a lot of nuclear too. Eventually Europe will be mainly nuclear as well. The key for India is to make sure these are built well -- the construction of the Commonwealth games under this government comes to mind. If they build nuclear plants with that level of incompetence it will be a disaster worse than Japan. Corruption in public sector matters and this is a prime example.
Protesting even after eminent people like Kalam vouching for the safety proves that there is no mind over this matter. Please don't stop this project at this stage may be we can stop new nuclear projects may not be allowed but allow this one to go on.
Dr. Kalam correctly lobbies for nuclear radiation as the definitive future source of energy. However, he presents an incorrect choice of radiation. We have nuclear fission reactors that use heat from decaying radioactive minerals as energy. These minerals are non-renewable, and additionally produce toxic radiations. The fission plant may be safe, but its radiation is not. On the other hand, the Sun is a nuclear reactor that runs on nuclear fusion. Solar cells and heaters enable us to use its light and heat radiations for energy. We will eventually run out of Uranium and Thorium, but the Sun is relatively eternal. Thus, truly long term economic growth can only be sustained by shifting to solar energy. This way, we may even avoid abusing the lives of marginalised communities like farmers and fisher-folk.
A nuclear power plant is not like a thermal power plant that you close at the end of the life cycle and forget. Radio isotopes remain in the area there for millions of years. Could any expert elaborate how to decommission a nuclear power plant once 35 years of its working life is over? How much will be the cost? How will the area be decontaminated. How will you contain emergence of genetically mutated plants and animals in the radiation contaminated area. The alternative lies in a big push for renewable energy, biofuels and so on, besides a change in our lifestyle to minimize wasteful energy use. Be saner and don't put put future generations in the radiation crucible to mutate.
Nuclear is not a short term solution as the nuclear waste takes millions of years to decay. The damage to environment including humans is irreverable. Bright people like Kalam etc should focus on research in Solar, Wind etc and help to produce them at a cheaper price.
The discussions so far has been two pronged. One, the experts keep saying it is safe. The leaders of the protest keep making noises more out of ignorance of the safety measures at the site and led by people who are determined to see the KPP do not see the light of the day. Both groups are wrong. First the nuclear experts should start talking the common-man language. It is not enough if they keep saying it is totally safe. They should explain, how safe it is and also answer the doubts raised by several. Secondly, the people, as of now, are rallying round their so-called leaders because they have been made to believe that the plant is a totally dangerous proposition and there cannot be any safety assurance at all. I think it is high time they open their eyes to the situation and start learning about the project safety there and start well-informed discussions to get their grievance addressed, if any, which also means they should stop making worthless noises and hear the experts.
For those staying in far away places like Bangalore, Bombay, etc it does not matter. Will they shift their residence to Koodankulam and support the project? They want electricity to light their homes. Is it more important than life?
People will understand when the Electicity per unit cost goes to 25 rupees. People like Dr.Kalam aware of the safety measurements. I am requesting people should drop their protest and ask for more benefits from the Gov. which also submitted by Dr.Kalam.
Our respectful scientist stated," atomic power-station is safe condition. no need afraid."of-course its true. we need more electricity to our country. it is also true.is it safe for future generation?if it is safe, why hi-tech countries like France , German, Japan want to abandon atomic energy-technology of power-station. Are they fools? Is there no scientist just like mr.abdulkalam? Atomic power station is running by fission or fusion technology of uranium or its bi- products. The energy is released by chain reaction which is controlled by carbon rods and heavy water H2O2.atomic power station is equals an atomic bomb. the atomic bomb is open energy,atomic power station is controlled energy.the energy level is only little difference..And also the bi products of uranium or thorium,like isotopes never stops its radiation even if it is a waste product. Mr.Abdulkalam should consider the health of future generation and make a right decision.
Atomic power generation is a good thinking. But it is absolutely not suitable for country like India. Ignorance of safety measures and over corruption of politicians will lead those poor people in danger. India is one of the frequent natural disaster risk country. It is not suited for atomic plant. Think about country like Germany and Switzerland, they are absolutely risk free from natural catastrophe, but they are still care of small risk and going away from Atomic plant. Why India is not thinking of poor people life??