Anti-nuclear activist demands ban on construction of new nuke units at Kudankulam

Anti-nuclear activist S.P. Udaykumar has demanded a ban on the construction of units three and four at Kudankulam nuke power plant in Tamil Nadu.

Spearheading the prolonged agitation against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KNPP) in Tirunelveli district, Udayakumar said this while addressing mediapersons in Chennai that false cases fostered on 227 billion people should be withdrawn immediately.

"Many political and people movement leaders have come up with two specific demands that unit three and four should not be constructed at the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project and all the false cases that have fostered on 227 billion people should be withdrawn forthwith. This federation has been struggling in favour of us from very beginning of the struggle and most of the political party leaders have been supporting us," said Udaykumar.

Earlier, the Madras High Court dismissed the petition, challenging the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board's clearance to the plant to load fuel.

He also informed that activists will embark upon a train trip from Kanyakumari to Kashmir from November 07 to spread the anti-nuclear message across length and breadth of the country.

"Social movements are coming together to oppose establishment of unit three and four at Kudankulam. On behalf of people movement against nuclear energy we are embarking upon a train trip from Kanyakumari to Kashmir from November 07 and we are trying to spread the anti nuclear message all over the country and calling for a national debate against all the nuclear power projects that are planned all over the country," he added.

Established by a joint venture between India and Russia, the Kudankulam nuclear power project (KNPP) envisages to build two 1,000 MW VVER type reactors by the end of last year.

However, in the wake of the Fukushima incident in Japan, several nuclear projects across India have run into trouble as protesting locals and activists argue that such plant s could adversely affect the environment.