BILL 2 LST

The important change in the Bill, tabled in the Lower
House Lok Sabha on May 7, being considered by the government
relates to Clause 17 which has provisions for "right of
recourse" to an operator of a nuclear plant which is the
state-run Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL).
As it stands, it provides for right of recourse in three
conditions -- (a) such right is expressly provided in the
contract in writing; (b) the nuclear incident has resulted
from the wilful act or gross negligence on the part of the
supplier of the material, equipment or services, or of his
employee; (c) the nuclear incident has resulted from the act
of commission or omission of a person done with the intent to
cause nuclear damage.
Senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi said his party
would oppose the Bill both in Parliament and outside.
Referring to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in Russia,
the BJP leader said the incident took place in a country where
the population density is scarce while in India such incidents
would be a disaster as the density of population here is one
of the highest in the world.
"It is necessary to look into the safety and security of
all such plants," he said and charged the United States with
not considering India as a developed country or even an
emerging power.
Referring to the Bhopal gas disaster and Warren Anderson
fleeing the country, Joshi said the Congress government at
that time under "US pressure" allowed him to escape from
India. PTI