Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant: No stay on fuel loading, says SC

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday did not stay the fuel loading process in Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant, set to be operational in two months, but firmly told the government that it would scrutinize safety issues afresh to assure itself that the plant posed no danger to people living around it.

A bench of Justices K S Radhakrishnan and Dipak Misra, mindful of the court's fundamental role as the "guardian of the citizen's fundamental rights", asked the Centre whether it had implemented at Kudankulam plant its own taskforce's 17 safety recommendations formulated to plug safety shortcomings that possibly caused the Fukushima disaster in Japan.

The Centre made light of the petitioner's charges, saying 11 of the 17 recommendations were in the nature of "abundant caution" and their non-implementation was not going to affect plant safety. But the bench said it was not going to brush aside any safety issue which was of critical concern to millions.

"Public interest and safety standards are paramount. Millions of people are living around the nuclear plant. Many of them are illiterate. Their lives cannot be put in danger. They have a right to know what safety measures were taken," the bench said and asked attorney general GE Vahanvati when the plant would be operational.

The AG said the nuclear plant would be operational within two months of completing the fuel loading process, which is about to start.