Legal challenge to India’s nuclear liability law
“The Act channels all the liability to the nuclear operator [now the 
government itself], and the victims are not allowed to sue companies supplying reactors and other materials.”
the Act was passed because the U.S., France and Russia, with which India had signed nuclear deals, pressured the government to buy expensive reactors from their suppliers.
Supreme Court to examine constitutional validity of nuclear civil 
liability law THE HINDU, 17 March 12, J. VENKATESAN The Supreme Court will examine the constitutional validity of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010, which limits the liability of an operator in the event of a nuclear disaster to Rs. 1,500 crore. Continue reading
India’s democracy shrinking, as government tries to stifle anti nuclear voices
India Cancels Visa for Japanese Anti-Nuclear Activist, Voice of America, Kurt Achin | New Delhi, 10 March 12, India’s government has revoked the visa of a Japanese anti-nuclear activist who was scheduled to visit during the one-year anniversary of the Fukushima disaster.
Nuclear energy opponents say the move fits a pattern of seeking to stifle criticism of India’s rapid push toward nuclear power…. Activists like Raina say the visa cancellation reflects a “shrinking democratic space” when it comes to discussing nuclear power in India. Continue reading
Nobel Laureate urges India to abandon harmful nuclear energy
Nobel laureate says nuclear energy can harm Times of India, TNN | Mar 10, 2012, “… a specialist in the field, Hans-Peter Durr, director emeritus at the Max-Planck Institute in Munich, Germany, says nuclear energy poses serious threat to public health and encourages a major financial drain on national economies. Durr won the Nobel peace prize in 1995.
He delivered the TAG-VHS diabetes research speech on ‘nuclear power and energy hunger’ in the city on Friday in the presence of Consul General of the Federal Republic of Germany Stefan Weckbach and an auditorium filled with scientists, doctors, businessmen and retired government officials. … Durr said we would be able to produce adequate energy from soft sources like the sun. “No one in the world knows what they should be doing with the waste generated from the nuclear waste, except for bombs. Even hiding the waste under the sea won’t help as its half life is several hundred years,” he said.
Earlier at a press conference on Thursday, Durr said government of India and Tamil Nadu should look at alternative sources to tap energy instead of opening a nuclear power plant inKudankulam. …. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Nobel-laureate-says-nuclear-energy-can-harm/articleshow/12203134.cms
India’s democracy disappearing under nuclear lobby pressure?
‘The fact that the government is going to the extent of cancelling legitimately granted visas clearly shows that they don’t want people from Japan to come to India and share their experience’ said Karuna Raina of the green group. Kobayashi helped save children from
radiation as part of a network of local mothers……
Scared India denies visa to nuclear activist and Fukushima disaster survivor Mail Online India, By DINESH C SHARMA, 7th March 2012 ‘We are a democracy, we are not like China’. Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh professed while making his ‘foreign hand behind nuclear protests’ remark recently.
However, actions of his government show that India is behaving much like China when it comes to muzzling dissent. The latest example of the government’s intolerant behaviour is denying a survivor of Fukushima disaster from visiting nuclear protest hotspots in India on the eve of the first anniversary of the Japanese nuclear accident on March 11. Continue reading
Conflict of interest in India’s nuclear regulation
In India, all Indian nuclear plants are in the public sector and so are the agencies that exercise regulatory functions and promotional responsibilities. In this situation, conflict of interest between regulation and promotion is inevitable.
How Fukushima is relevant to Kudankulam, THE HINDU, T. N. SRINIVASAN, T. S. GOPI RETHINARAJ, SURYA SETHI, 8 March 12, “……REGULATORY INDEPENDENCE The Fukushima accident highlighted the need for the independence of regulators from plant operators. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) has long been criticised for being subservient to DAE, the promoting organisation for nuclear power.
After Fukushima, the establishment of a truly independent regulator has been promised.
Currently, institutional deficiencies are structurally inbuilt and hard to eliminate. If they remain, the credibility and autonomy of the regulator cannot be ensured. Historically, nuclear policymaking in India was not transparent and involved only a handful of people in the
government. Continue reading
Muslims, Christians join other religions in opposing Kudankulam nuclear powerr
Religions unite in fight against nuclear plant, TNN | Mar 5, 2012, TIRUNELVELI: In a strong message that all religions are united in the fight against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP), protesters offered special prayers at the Viswamithrar temple situated at Vijayapathi village near Kudankulam, on Sunday.
About 250 villagers, both men and women fasted from Friday onwards to prepare themselves for the ritual of carrying milk pots to the temple. At the break of day on Sunday, people from coastal villages like Chettikulam, Kudankulam, Idinthakarai, Vairavikinaru, Avudayapuram, Thillainagar, Koothankuli gathered at the Pathrakaliamman temple at Kudankulam where special prayers were offered before commencing the rally. After the prayers, 207 women carried the milk pots and went on a rally through Kudankulam, Vairavikinaru, Idinthakarai, Mela Vijayapathi and Keela Vijayapathi to reach the Viswamithrar temple situated on the sea shore at Vijayapathi village.
The rally, which started from Kudankulam at 6am, reached the temple by 7.15am after which special poojas were performed. The villagers, who hailed from all religious denominations, received the ‘prasad’ at the temple and prayed that the KKNPP will be abandoned…..
“People from every religion, including Muslims from Keela Vijayapathi participated in the ceremony and offered prayers at the temple. Among the 207 milk pots, 13 of them were carried by Christians from Idinthakarai. We are together in our fight against the nuclear power plant that will endanger our lives,” said Peter Milton from Idinthakarai, who is also a member of the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE)…. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/madurai/Religions-unite-in-fight-against-nuclear-plant/articleshow/12140823.cms
India’s political problems intensify, with anti nuclear movement
Mood at nuclear-plant stir turns anti-DMK , http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Mood-at-nuclear-plant-stir-turns-anti-DMK/articleshow/12116624.cms TNN | Mar 3, 2012 KUDANKULAM: The anti-nuclear stir, spearheaded by the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE) at Kudankulam, is turning out to be an anti-DMK and anti-Congress agitation too.
For two days, on Wednesday and Thursday, fishermen from many nearby hamlets went around removing DMK flags from the area, protesting against party president M Karunanidhi’s recent statement that the state government should have taken stern action against those staging a protest against the upcoming nuclear power plant. Karunanidhi on Wednesday accused the state government of extending “silent support” to anti-nuclear protesters.
DMK cadres in many coastal hamlets are incensed by his remarks. “We have decided to quit DMK and the same message has been relayed to coastal villages in Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari and Tuticorin. Party cadres from Idinthakarai, who are participating in the struggle, were asked to assemble at the protest site on Friday. But the decision of quitting the party is for individual cadre to take,” said T Raj Leon, a DMK sympathiser.
The mood has been anti-Congress ever since the agitation started 200 days ago. There are indications that the agitation may take a different turn in the coming days, especially after the Sankarankoil bypoll on March 18 as the state government is likely to show greater desire to resolve the issue. Close on the heels of a meeting between chief minister J Jayalalithaa and those leading the agitation, the government on Friday sent additional director general of police (law and order) S George to the region for an assessment of the situation. He toured the area to gather first-hand knowledge of the terrain. The entire police top brass in south Tamil Nadu accompanied him. A heavy police force was deployed near the plant.
Though there is no word yet on the future course of action, indications are that the state may heed to Centre’s request to clear the area near the plant for completion of works to ensure its early commissioning.
Global anti nuclear movement opposes nuclear in all countries, not just India
The anti-nuclear movement today is a pointer to the huge crisis that India and the world is facing.
the same movement is also opposing American reactors coming up in Gujarat, French EPRs coming up in Jaitapur and indigenous reactors being constructed in places like Chutka and Fatehabad.
How ‘Foreign’ Is The Anti-Nuclear Movement In India?, Counter Currents, By P K Sundaram http://www.countercurrents.org/sundaram290212.htm 29 February, 2012 Dianuke.org The Indian Prime-Minister has started an open tirade against the movement opposing the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant. In his recent interview, he alleged that it is “foreign-hand” and NGOs with American funding that are blocking India’s progress, not only in nuclear energy but also in GMOs.
It is one occasion where we can agree with our Prime Minister. It is important to understand today that the anti-nuclear movement in the country is a voice from beyond the existing system. Entirely foreign to the Manmohan Singh’s imagination of India.
The ‘illiterate’ fisherfolk in Koodankulam today earn at least thrice more than what they would earn in the employment guarantee scheme if they become part of the Manmohan-land governed by primitive market policies. Through opposing the reactor, a sustainably-living community is basically refusing to be part of the neo-liberal India. It is not only foreign to our PM’s imagination, it is essentially opposite to what his economics stands for.
The local administration in Jaitapur, in its attempt to ‘reach out’ and ‘educate’ people after their massive protests, went to the Madban village with vehicles loaded with armed men. Nobody from the village came out to welcome them except an old women who asked: if you have come to talk, whom are you afraid of? Why all this battalion? This moral landscape of dignity of the Jaitapur women definitely has no space in the India that Manmohan Singh, Ahluwalia, Chidambaram and other ex-employees of the World Bank and IMF want to impose on us.
The compensation amount for land in Haryana, for the nuclear power plants in Gorakhpur (Fatehabad district), has been raised dramatically over last 2 years. This month, it was raised to 34 hundred thousands rupees per acre of land. This is an unthinkable amount in India for farmers. One of the main reasons to plan a reactor in Haryana, criminally overlooking other requisites of setting-up reactors, was the assumption that farmers there are more likely to agree on better compensation. But the farmers of Gorakhpur and surrounding villages have refused to accept this amount, at the cost of their health, safety and livelihoods, particularly after Fukushima. This is beyond the neo-liberal mindset of our ruling class, where nothing is more than just a commodity. Continue reading
India deports German tourist solely because of his anti nuclear opinions
German tourist’s deportation from Koodankulam: Dr. R S Mohan Lal’s Statement http://www.dianuke.org/german-tourists-deportation-from-koodankulam-dr-r-s-mohan-lals-statement/ Statement of Dr.R.S.Lal Mohan, Nagercoil regarding the News item about the German tourist Mr.Rainer.
Mr.Rainer is a tourist spending his own money. He was staying in a very low budget hotel spending Rs.200/- per day as tariff. He could not afford to pay costly accommodation. He is a very frugal man living a simple life. After working as a computer technologist he saved the money for being a tourist. He used to spend his retired life in India. Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia and Loas as life is cheap in these countries. Even he has lost weight because of Indian food which causes dysentery. He has only 2 or 3 pairs of dress. Computer is his only companion. He loves travel. He calls me sometimes to inform me about the dolphins. He is a Nature lover talks to me about nature and tree planting. He has a high degree of social consciousness and refined behavior
It is absolutely wrong to think he funded any NGOs and supported the Anti-Koodankulam agitation. He has no money to so. Any if the Govt. has proof that he supported the agitation by paying Rs.500 crores, he should have been detained in India instead of deporting him. Now he has no way to deny the charges.
It is wrong on the part of police to treat him shabbly. India is inviting tourists and many people come to Kanyakumari District as tourist. The treatment of Mr.Rainer will carry wrong impression on the tourist from Germany.
As for as I know that Mr.Rainer never gave any donation to any NGO. It is totally false that he funded the Koodankulam agitation. The Nuclear prolobby want to mislead the people that the foreigners life Rainer support the anti koodankulam agitation.
Thank You, (Dr.R.S.Lal Mohan) Conservation of Nature Trust, 43c, Water Tank Road, Nagercoil-1, 28.2.2012, Nagercoil
India’s Good Vision denies allegations of funding from overseas for anti-nuclear activities
Fourth ‘anti-nuclear’ NGO says we got no foreign funds in last two years, The 
Indian Express http://www.indianexpress.com/news/fourth-antinuclear-ngo-says-we-got-no…/918982/ Gopu Mohan , Shaju Philip : Kanyakumari, Fri Mar 02 2012 For the last two years, Good Vision — the fourth NGO facing government action for allegedly diverting foreign funds to fuel the protests against the Koodankulam nuclear power plant — has not received any funds from abroad.
From 2008-2010, Good Vision received foreign funds adding up to Rs 1.5 crore through CARE India, UNDP and Oxfam for implementing post-tsunami relief work. But, according to the organisation’s foreign contribution account at Syndicate Bank’s Karungal branch (in Kanyakumari district), the last monetary activity was two years ago.
While the three other NGOs — Rural Uplift Centre (RUC), Tuticorin Diocesan Association (TDA) and Tuticorin Multi-Purpose Social Service Society (TMSSS) — have denied any links to the protests, as reported by The Indian Express on Thursday, the director of Good Vision, Mano Thangaraj, is an active politician and is linked to the agitation. He is the convener of the political wing of the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy.
Like in the case of the other three NGOs, Good Vision received a note from the union home ministry seeking details about its foreign funds. Last month, Good Vision was informed that its account had been frozen for violation of the Foreign Contributions Regulations Act (FCRA), but no reason was specified.
Thangaraj alleged the move against Good Vision was motivated by his links with the agitation. “I have been opposing the plant since 1988. My work as an activist has no connection with the work done by Good Vision, which is a purely charitable outfit,’’ he said. “We have not undertaken any work in Koodankulam, Idinthakarai or anywhere in the neighbourhood,’’ he added. http://www.indianexpress.com/news/fourth-antinuclear-ngo-says-we-got-no…/918982/
Sharp denials by India’s non government organisations, as government accuses them
Govt intensifies drive against NGOs, to scrutinize workings of 77 more organizations Times of India, Pradeep Thakur, TNN | Mar 2, 2012, NEW DELHI: The government intensified its drive against NGOs it suspects of being hostile to national interests, with the home ministry zeroing in on 77 organizations whose activities will be scrutinized following a crackdown on four NGOs for allegedly fanning protests against the Kudankulam nuclear plant. …. The government’s tough steps against NGOs allegedly diverting foreign funds to sustain the agitation against the Kudankulam power project have drawn sharp criticism while the organizations deny any involvement in the agitation…..
The government has, however, refused to divulge names of the NGOs that it says are behind the protest at Tamil Nadu. The opposition has demanded a statement from the PM while civil society activists have decried the governments strong arm tactics.
PMANE has denied allegations that it is being funded by American NGOs to organise the protest.. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Govt-intensifies-drive-against-NGOs-to-scrutinize-workings-of-77-more-organizations/articleshow/12105416.cms
India prepares to stop visas for anti nuclear foreigners – 77 non government organisations scrutinised
77 foreign NGOS under watch, face visa woes, Sanjib Kr Baruah & Aloke Tikku, Hindustan Times http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/77-foreign-NGOS-under-watch-face-visa-woes/Article1-819518.aspx New Delhi, March 02, 2012 The government has put 77 foreign NGOs on its global watchlist, making it difficult for their officials to get visas to India. The step comes within days of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh complaining that foreign NGOs were trying to influence Indian policies and projects.
The ministry put together the list based on information from intelligence agencies and the suspicious conduct of representatives of these NGOs in the past. Top government sources said the watchlist had been circulated to all Indian missions and posts with an advice to “monitor” visa requests from the NGOs – a euphemism for putting the applications through greater scrutiny that would lead to delays or rejection.
Officials refused to name the NGOs, insisting this would have serious diplomatic repercussions. But one of them confirmed that most were from the US and European Union. In 2010, US-based NGOs accounted for one-third of the foreign funds worth Rs 9,000 crore to Indian NGOs.
In an interview to Science magazine, the PM had blamed NGOs funded by US and Scandinavian countries for campaigning against the Kudankulam nuclear project and use of biotechnology.
Hypocrisy: Indian government deports anti nuclear foreigner, fetes pro nuclear foreignors
India with it’s multi gigawatt solar availability could power the entire world with just solar
Solar is cheap today. It was 30 dollars per watt and today it has dropped down to 3 dollars per watt Nuclear is way way more expensive and will only leave our kids with a cancerous future and deadly waste forever
from our correspondent in India, 29 Feb 12, The Government is cancelling the licences of three NGOs without giving their names because obviously these NGOs don’t exist. Let’s see what they will cook up and who they will pay to be stooges for the government. It is not an impossible task for this extremely anti-democratic government to organize goons who will agree to be phony NGOs in their attempt to derail the Koodankulam protests.
Sad this government had to stoop this low to make such a hue and cry about an innocent tourist and about non-existing foreign funding of the protests. We are however one hundred per cent sure the government is massively funded to promote foreign interests in our country. Continue reading
Cancer in India’s nuclear workers – the other side of nuclear power’s rosy picture
After being in denial for years, last month the selfsame Department of Atomic Energy for the first time admitted that the deaths of its employees and their dependents at the Kalpakkam nuclear site were caused by multiple myeloma, a rare form of bone marrow cancer linked to nuclear radiation.
Not that the DAE willingly divulged the information – it came to light in response to a Right to Information (RTI) inquiry from October 2011, … one can only wonder what other reports the DAE is sitting on
The Darker Reality of India’s Nuclear Power Goals, By John Daly Oilprice.com 26 February 2012 India is betting heavily on nuclear power to meet its surging energy needs. While India currently has six nuclear power plants (NPPs) with 20 reactors generating 4,780 megawatts, seven other reactors are under construction and are expected to generate an additional 5,300 megawatts.
This current rate of nuclear power generation pales into insignificance with New Delhi’s future plans, Continue reading
Protest against India deporting German tourist because he is anti nuclear
“I don’t know whether he was involved in raising funds for anti-KNPP protestors. But being anti-nuclear does not mean one is anti-national.”
Foreign fund remark: Kudankulam protester sends legal notice to PM Economic Times, 28 FEB, 2012, German deported, anti-Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project activist cries foul Chennai: A German national was deported from India on Tuesday on grounds of raising funds for protests against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project, prompting an anti-nuclear activist to say the move was anti-tourist. Continue reading
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