Activists leading the agitation against the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) in Tamil Nadu want the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd to convert the nuclear power plant into coal-fuelled thermal power station. “It is possible. All they have to do is to shut down the entire reactor and set up a thermal power plant working on coal or gas,” Pushparayan, leader of the Peoples Movement Against Nuclear Energy told DNA.
Dr M P Parameswaran, former nuclear engineer of the Department of Atomic Energy who heads the People’s Science Movement, said it was possible to convert the nuclear power plant into a thermal power station. “This is nothing new. Many nuclear power plants in the USA have been converted into coal-powered thermal stations following agitations by people ,” he said. The fuel rods are yet to be loaded into the reactor and hence it is easy for the NPCIL to convert the reactor into a coal or gas based power plant, pointed out a DAE scientist.
Pushparayan scoffed media reports that the union government had set up a 15-member scientific team to allay the fears of the villagers about the nuclear power plant, “We will not recognize the team to be deputed by the Union government. Let them include representatives of the state government and the civil society. We do not want a group of scientists to come here to sermonize to us,” said Pushparayan.
The agitation against the KNPP got an-all India outlook on Thursday with more than 200 activists from neighbouring Kerala joining the relay fast at Koodankulam. Udaya Kumar, convener, People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy, said activists from other states would join the agitation in coming days.
Meanwhile, N K Balaji, project director, KNPP, said the scientists are waiting for a word from the district administration to enter the premises of the power plant. “For the last six days we have been prevented from entering the project site and this has upset our plans. There is going to be a definite delay in the commissioning of the plant,” he said.
