Anti-Jaitapur nuclear plant campaign goes global

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SME Times News Bureau | 16 Sep, 2013
Notwithstanding recent measures by the Maharashtra government to resolve pending issues, activists have taken the protests against the 9,900MW Jaitapur Nuclear Power Plant to the international level, an official said Saturday.

Prominent anti-nuclear activist Pradeep Indulkar is in Germany to launch protests against the JNPP coming up in Maharashtra' coastal district Ratnagiri, around 400 km from Mumbai.

The resident of Thane, adjoining Mumbai, will also travel to France to drum up support against the project, coming up in collaboration with French company Areva.

"As part of the protests, we are planning 15 shows of the Yellow Oscar winning movie 'High Power' in Germany and 10 screenings in France next month," Indulkar said in a statement from Germany.

"This tour is dedicated to the Jaitapur struggle with a slogan 'Stop Jaitapur - Down with Areva'. It is an effort to gain international support to the Jaitapur struggle and talk to the international anti-nuke community, when this protest is going into a very critical situation," Indulkar said.

Indulkar and other anti-nuke activists from Munster had wide-ranging discussions on the issue and the ongoing protests against JNPP.

"It was nice to know that people here know lots of details about Kudankulam and Jaitapur. We also have a banner signature with people signing banners at the show, and also distributing T shirts with slogans," he said.

The documentary 'High Power', highlights the plight of people staying at Tarapur in neighbouring Thane district, where India's first nuclear plant Tarapur Atomic Power Plant (TAPP), came up nearly five decades ago.

The 27-minute film, made by Indulkar, bagged the coveted 'Yellow Oscar' at Rio-de-Janiero in May this year.

Last week, the Maharashtra government announced a series of proposals for compensation and other demands of the villagers opposing the mega-project by Oct 15.

The country's biggest nuclear park and the world's largest in terms of net electrical power rating - the 9,900 MW JNPP - is coming up in Madhban-Jaitapur villages in the picturesque Ratnagiri.

Slated to cost around $10 billion, JNPP is being constructed by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) in collaboration with French company, Areva SA.

However, since the past more than three years, it has been facing massive opposition from local villagers, several NGOs, and parties like Shiv Sena.