India for snap compensation and full liability in Nuke Bill

CHENNAI - Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) Chairman Srikumar Banerjee has said India is committed towards ensuring prompt compensation and absolute responsibility on the Nuclear Liability Bill.

Speaking to media persons after inaugurating the Super Computer named ‘Anna Poorna’ at the Institute of Mathematical Sciences here on Friday, Banerjee said: “The idea of a Nuclear Liability Bill is to have a prompt compensation and absolute responsibility. The bill is framed on these two ideas and we have presented the case and it has gone through the Cabinet’s approval and placed to the Parliamentary Standing Committee of Science and Technology.”

“So, they are discussing each of these points in a very detailed manner, not just with us, but with people from various walks of life,” he added.

He also mentioned that the first reactor of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant would be functional by the end of this year.

“Nuclear Liability Bill is for a country; there is nothing like any country specific type of a thing. It is for our country. So it is to be done in a manner…we have to be hundred per cent sure and not 99.9 per cent that anything should not happen. In spite of that, if anything happens there should be a proper liability and fixing the liability to the operator, and then of course, next is the government,” he said.

The Nuclear Liability Bill was tabled in the Lok Sabha in March 2010.

The bill lays down the liability of the operator at rupees five billion in case of an accident and a maximum amount of liability at rupee equivalent of 300 million Special Drawing Rights.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Left parties have opposed the bill, saying it not only limits the liability, it also transfers a large part of the liability to the government. (ANI)