CPI-M censures Achuthanandan for Kudankulam stand

"The Central Committee rejects his views. It censures him (Achuthanandan) for his refusal to abide by the stand which was worked out at the Party Congress," a CPI-M Central Committee statement said.

The Central Committee, which concluded its three-day meeting here, also directed Achuthanandan to adopt the stand taken by the party.

Making an exception for the Kudankulam project, the CPI-M favoured commissioning of the two reactors from Russia "constructed at considerable cost" after an independent safety audit and putting in place necessary safety measures.

"In the case of the Kudankulam reactors, the resolution has made an exception as the agreement for these reactors were signed two decades before the Indo-US nuclear deal, at a time when the US and other western countries had imposed sanctions on India," the statement said.

It noted that since then, two reactors from Russia have already been constructed at a considerable cost and they are at the final stage before commissioning.

"However, the resolution has stressed that given the local people's apprehensions about their safety and livelihood after the Fukushima accident in Japan, these concerns should be met. There should be an independent safety audit and necessary safety measures must be put in place before the reactors are commissioned," it said.