US nuke firms want India to adopt compensn convention: Report

Lalit K Jha
Washington, Apr 16 (PTI) American firms, which pushed
hard for the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal, are unlikely to
engage in atomic trade with India if it does not adopt a
Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage,
says a Congressional report.
"It is worth noting that US firms will likely be very
reluctant to engage in nuclear trade with India if the
government does not become party to the Convention on
Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage, which has not
yet entered into force," said a latest report on the landmark
civil nuclear deal released by Congressional Research
Service(CRS).
The convention, among its provisions, places the onus of
compensation in case of nuclear damage on the 'Installation
State' (where the nuclear facilities are located), in this
case India. However, New Delhi has not indicated when it
plans to become party to the CSC. The Civil Nuclear Liability
Bill, whose passage is a must for is currently locked in a
stand-off between the Government and the Opposition.
The 47-page report, a copy of which has been obtained by
PTI, took note of a letter by the then Foreign Secretary
Shivshankar Menon in September 2008, on the issue of where
India stood regarding this international convention.
"It is the intention of the Indian Government to take all
steps necessary to adhere to the Convention on Supplementary
Compensation for Nuclear Damage prior to the commencement of
international civil nuclear cooperation under" the US-India
agreement, the report said quoting the letter.
India's decision to become a party to the convention is,
according to the State Department, "an important step in
ensuring that US nuclear firms can compete on a level playing
field with other international competitors" because many other
countries' nuclear firms "have other liability protections
afforded to them by their governments." PTI LKJ
AHM


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