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"During our visits (to India's nuclear
installations post the March 11, 2011, Fukushima
disaster in Japan), we observed areas that need
to be strengthened. We drew the government's attention
to these and the issue is being addressed,"
said M. Shashidhar Reddy, vice chairman of the
National Disaster Management Authority.
"The CISF (Central Industrial Security Force)
and the Coast Guard are involved in the effort.
There is a need to strengthen the Coast Guard
and enforce the no-fly zone (in the vicinity of
nuclear plants," Reddy said during an interactive
session after a talk on "Nuclear Disaster
Management in India: Capabilities and Constraints",
at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses
(IDSA), India's premier think-tank.
"We need to be constantly upgrading as we
can never be perfect," Reddy, a legislator
from Andhra Pradesh's ruling Congress party, added.
The reply was in keeping with his emphasis on
the need for greater transparency on India's nuclear
power plans, on the Kudanlkulam plant in particular
and on the demands of the people living in the
Emergency Planning Zone in a radius of 16 km from
atomic installations.
"We have to own up to the deficiencies and
gaps that exist and find solutions. We have to
win the confidence of the people. They have the
right to make demands and it is for the government
to address this," Reddy maintained. "There
is need for transparency in our dealings."
On Kudanlkulam, Reddy said one of the concerns
expressed was that the population in the Emergency
Planning Zone was growing.
"But then, this is a worldwide phenomenon.
There is a large population around (the) Tarapur
(nuclear plant near Mumbai) and Narora (in Uttar
Pradesh). The people have genuine concerns. Their
development needs have to be addressed,"
Reddy said.
As for the other "apprehensions" expressed
over Kudankulam, he said: "I am sure that
in the course of time, the people will understand
(the need for the plant)."
Speaking of the NDMA's initiatives in the wake
of the Fukushima disaster, Reddy said several
Quick Response Teams with trained personnel and
improved medical preparedness had been created
to meet any eventuality, even as "India has
an enviable record of nuclear safety and we are
proud of this."
He also pointed out that the guidelines for upgrading
health facilities in districts with nuclear power
plants have been provided, besides which a number
of committees at the state and district levels
have been set up.
Reddy said the Indian public needs to be sensitised
towards various nuclear and radiological emergencies
that may arise, adding that the NDMA has learnt
valuable lessons from the 2010 Mayapuri incident
in the national capital, where radioactive material
was disposed of as scrap.
Chairing the talk, Arvind Gupta, director general
of the IDSA and convener of the Indian Pugwash
Society, expressed the hope that NDMA's efforts
would go a long way in building confidence among
the people.
Reddy has been associated with NDMA since its
inception in 2005. He constituted a Task Force
comprising eminent experts following the Fukushima
meltdown to apprise Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
of India's capabilities to manage a similar disaster.
(IANS)
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