Nuclear power holds key to development, says PM

Manmohan stresses on need for safety controls at nuclear power plants

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with Deepender Singh Hooda, Rohtak MP, at the foundation-laying ceremony of the Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership and National Cancer Institute at Jhajjar in Haryana on Friday. Photo: Sandeep Saxena

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday stressed the need to increase power supply for economic development and said the Centre planned to build the capacity to generate more than 27,000 MWe of nuclear power over the next decade.

Dr. Singh was addressing a public gathering at Jasaur Kheri village here after laying the foundation stones for the Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership and the National Cancer Institute.

He described nuclear energy as a “reliable and clean source” of power. He said India was among those nations that had developed technology for setting up nuclear power plants and also achieved the capability for producing nuclear fuel.

He stressed the need for ensuring that the material used for producing nuclear fuel did not fall into the hands of terrorists and criminals. He added that India had adopted the best methods for the safety and security of nuclear plants and material.

He said India had incorporated several new methods of security in the design and management of power plants, following the Fukushima incident in Japan in 2011. He added that Indian safety standards were at par with the best in the world.

The Prime Minister said the Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership would play an important role in ensuring more safety measures for nuclear power plants. When the centre is fully functional, it will work towards designing a safe and sustainable nuclear system.

The Prime Minister said locals would directly benefit from this project and get an annual royalty for 33 years, apart from compensation for their land. Many projects, worth Rs.10 crore, would be carried out for the benefit of the locals, including a girls’ college, a school for children with special needs, development of the Bhindwas Bird Sanctuary and healthcare facilities.

Dr. Singh said the National Cancer Institute, to be set up on the AIIMS campus at Badsha village of Jhajjar, would be the lone such mega health project in the country. It would be developed at a cost of about Rs.2,000 crore over the next three years.