-The Hindu   In a record, Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) produced 32,455 million units of power in the financial year 2011-12, marking an increase of 23 per cent from 26,473 million units generated in 2010-1. Its 19 operating reactors, with a total installed capacity of 4,680 MWe, generated the 32,455 million units. “The financial year 2011-12 has seen a robust growth for us. The turnover has increased to about Rs.7,500 crore...

The agitation against the Kudankulam nuclear power plant can be seen as a case of activism gone berserk. The high-octane drama against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) in Tamil Nadu has wound down. The seven-month-long agitation led by the People's Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE) at Idinthakarai village in Tirunelveli district, demanding the closure of the ready-to-be commissioned project, ended on March 27 when S.P. Udayakumar, PMANE convener, called off...

The 'Food Security' Bill falls flat as its content does not match its aspirations A disconnect runs through the nomenclature, preamble, objectives and content of the National Food Security Bill, 2011. The Preamble goes beyond the Title and states that the Bill provides “for food and nutritional security in human life cycle approach, by ensuring access to adequate quantity of quality food at affordable price….” Even on cursory reading, it is...

Tamil Nadu chief minister J. Jayalalithaa, who had recommended the suspension of operations at the Koodankulam nuclear power plant until people’s concerns had been allayed, said on Monday that work on the plant should resume immediately. The state cabinet based its decision on a report submitted last month by an expert committee that gave the project the all-clear, she said. “As per the state cabinet consensus, I (order) that the process for...

-The Hindu   Chief Minister dwells on findings of experts' panel The State government's Rs.500-crore package for infrastructure development in Kudankulam consists of facilities for repairs of mechanised boats of fishermen and fish cold storage, according to Chief Minister Jayalalithaa. Announcing the State government's decision on the resumption of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNNP) in a five-page statement, Ms. Jayalalithaa stated that the package also included housing and road infrastructure improvement. She gave an...