First reactor at Kudankulam nuclear plant will be operational soon: PM

Moscow: In Moscow, the Prime Minister has announced that the first reactor of the Kudankulam nuclear plant will be operational in a few weeks.   All work at the plant in Tamil Nadu has been suspended because of daily protests by residents of the area, who block roads leading to the plant.  Staff engineers and other staff members find it tough to make their way to the nuclear plant, which has 13,000 crores riding on it. The plant, being built with Russian expertise and assistance, was meant to alleviate the substantial power problems in Tamil Nadu.

But villagers in this coastal part of Tamil Nadu say that after the disaster at Fukushima earlier this year, they worry about whether the plant's safety checks will survive a tsunami. They also claim that the nuclear plant will contaminate the water, and jeopardize the livelihood of fishermen.

They have found an ally in Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, who has told the Prime Minister that her state is not in favour of the atomic energy plant, unless the residents of Kudankulam are brought on board.

The Prime Minister had deputed a committee of experts to visit the plant; they have declared that it is safe. Other assurances have been given by former president APJ Abdul Kalam,  and bodies like the Nuclear Power Corporation of Indian Limted (NCPIL) and the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE)