Mumbai, Nov 30 (ANI): Former Atomic Energy Commission Chiarman Anil Kakodkar has supported the setting up of the controversial nuclear plant in Jaitapur, Maharashtra.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a seminar titled "Jaitapur Project To Have Or Not To Have" here, Kakodkar described nuclear energy a key tool in the country's development, but also insisted that local residents need to be taken into confidence on the issue.
He also said India has completely different set of situations as opposed to Japan, which witnessed a disaster in its Fukushima nuclear plant in March.
"There can be no two ways about the fact that the questions that are there in the mind of the people should be addressed. It is my personal opinion that nuclear energy is an indisputable part of our development. And I am confident that nuclear energy is a safe energy. The people are apprehensive after the accident that happened in Fukushima but there is a lot of difference between situations in Japan and India," he added.
Asserting that Jaitapur is a suitable site for the setting up of a plant, Kakodkar said: "The choice of any site is part of a technical procedure and it is done on that basis. Jaitapur fits the parameters of the site selection and it fits well into them. So, in my opinion, Jaitapur is a very good site (for a nuclear power plant)."
Jaitapur residents have stepped up their protests over the past few weeks, aiming to ratchet up pressure on the government to shutdown various nuclear projects, fearing a possible recurrence of the recent disaster witnessed in Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan.
The Jaitapur nuclear power complex is located in the ecologically sensitive coastal Maharashtra region, which includes Raigad, Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri Districts.
Nuclear Power Corporation of India is building the 9900-megawatt power plant - said to be the world's largest - in collaboration with French nuclear designing firm Areva. (ANI)
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