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Outrage in India over nuclear Bill, following Bhopal gas case

Verdict in Bhopal case stirs nuclear bill outrage – The National Newspaper; MUMBAI. Anuj Chopra, 13 June 2010,  A bill aimed at capping the compensation paid out by foreign firms running India’s nuclear power plants in the event of an accident has come under increasing opposition after last week’s Bhopal gas tragedy verdict.

The Civil Nuclear Liability Bill, a crucial piece of legislation needed to bring into operation a 2008 accord with the United States for full atomic power co-operation, proposes to cap foreign firms’ liability at US$450 million (Dh1.7 billion) in the event of a nuclear accident.
But opposition parties and civil rights groups are invoking last week’s much-lamented Bhopal court verdict to argue against ratifying the legislation which they said could shield US companies from properly compensating in the event of a disaster………Civil rights groups accused the government of trying to protect US interests, instead of its own public. They say capping the nuclear liability is grossly unfair, especially given that US companies stand to rake in billions of dollars in profit from the Indian market.

“Even 25 years after the Bhopal tragedy, people are not fully compensated. In case of a nuclear disaster there would be many more people, who will be wiped out, suffer from radiation and wait for treatment for many years,” Uday Kumar, the co-ordinator of the National Alliance of Anti-nuclear Movements, a civil rights group, said in a statement.
The liability bill, which is being reviewed by the government, also promises to grant full immunity to the manufacturer and supplier of components for the nuclear reactor.

Verdict in Bhopal case stirs nuclear bill outrage – The National Newspaper

June 14, 2010 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | India, politics | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear wastes, uranium