The former chief of India's nuclear regulator has come out with fresh allegations that the Russian-built nuclear plant at Kudankulam is unsafe, though he has blamed the Indians, not the Russians.
A. Gopalakrishnan, retired head of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, published an article last week in The New Indian Express in which he said the plant was in serious safety trouble because its instrumentation and control design package, which came from Russia, were faulty.
Gopalakrishnan laid the blame on the Indians, particularly the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited, which owns and runs all nuclear power plants in the country.
"Russians are very well-organized and systematic, and they rigidly follow the rules and expect others also to do so. While Indians, too, have rules and regulations on paper, to expedite work or to minimize cost, they would not hesitate to bend or break rules," he said.
Gopalakrishnan said there was a persistent problem with electrical emissions and the cabling system, which should be redone.
"This may take several more months and extensive reworking, but this must be done in the interest of public safety," he said.
