SC asks Centre to respond on safety measures at Kudankulam

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday sought response from Centre and Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) on implementation of safety guidelines issued by it for Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in Tamil Nadu.

A bench headed by Justice K S Radhakrishnan asked the authorities to file report within three weeks on a petition alleging that all the safety and security measures were not put in place before commissioning of the plant. It passed the order on the plea of anti-nuclear activist G Sundarrajan, who had moved the apex court against the commissioning of the plant. While giving a green signal to the nuclear power project in May last year, the apex court had, however, passed a slew of directions relating to environment protection, disaster management, safety of the people, and quality of systems and components in the plant and had said that they be complied with before its commissioning. It had directed Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) and AERB to maintain constant vigil and make periodical inspection of the plant at least once in three months and if any defect is noticed, the same has to be rectified forthwith. It also had said NPCIL should ensure that the radioactive discharges to the environmental aquatic atmosphere and terrestrial route shall not cross the limits prescribed and NPCIL, AERB and Tamil Nadu government should take adequate steps to implement the National Disaster Management Guidelines. It had said that endeavour be made by the governments to withdraw all the criminal cases filed against the agitators so that peace and normalcy be restored at Kudankulam and nearby places and steps should be taken to educate the people of the necessity of the plant which is in the largest interest of the nation particularly the state of Tamil Nadu.