Is nuke deal worth wasting so much time? : Bhargava

NEW DELHI: Amid efforts to seek a waiver from the Nuclear Suppliers Group, a member of the National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) P M Bhargava has raised questions over the government's obsession with the Indo-US nuclear deal wondering whether it was worth "wasting" so much time on.

Bhargava, former vice chairman of National Knowledge Commission, insisted that the nuclear deal will not help the country meet its energy needs even after 20 years of implementation as it will contribute "only 7-8 per cent" to the total power generation.
He said the government should have "put a stop to the deal long back" and wondered why Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has taken so much of risk for the atomic deal.

"My personal opinion is that the government should not have come to this level on the nuclear deal issue and so much of time has been wasted on this particular deal. It should not have done so," the founder Director of Centre for Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, told the media.

"The government has put all the major issues on the back-burner and is concentrating only on this particular issue. They should have not come to this level," Bhargava said.

He also felt that the Hyde Act would have some implications on the country. However, he declined to elaborate.
The comments come at a time when India and the US are engaged in all-out efforts to garner support among the 45 members of the NSG for an unconditional waiver.