Just a few days ago, Prime Minister Modi was in the state to witness the initiation of core loading of India’s Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor at Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu. It was noteworthy that Chief Minister M.K. Stalin refrained from participating in the inauguration ceremony of the Kalpakkam project.
The DMK organizational secretary, R.S. Bharathi, clarified the reason for it. He said that the decision to not attend was rooted in opposition to the project, which is perceived as being against the will of the Tamil people and orchestrated by the Union Government. Bharti emphasized concerns about the potential environmental impact and questioned the rationale behind locating the nuclear project in Tamil Nadu instead of Gujarat or Uttar Pradesh.
“The 500 Mega Watt Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor in Kalpakkam was not commissioned during the DMK regime. The party consistently opposes projects like Sterlite which affect people. Chief Minister MK Stalin did not take part in PM Narendra Modi’s event on Monday because the plant poses a risk to the people,” stated Bharti during a press briefing.
Bharti criticized Prime Minister Modi’s frequent visits to Tamil Nadu, likening them to candidates seeking support before a municipal election. He accused Modi of failing to address the demands of the people.
He said, “I am from that district. If you check, there are several cancer cases in the area.” He also claimed that foreigners who came to visit Mahabalipuram did not consume seafood because of fears of the fish containing the radiation from Kalpakkam through the sea. He further stated, “Why is Modi not doing this in UP or Gujarat? His goal is to destroy Tamil Nadu in all ways possible.”
He also added that Stalin’s absence at the event was a ‘rajathanthiram’, a diplomatic move that he learned from Karunanidhi to avoid controversy, and Bharti highlighted the DMK government’s commitment to halt projects deemed detrimental to Tamil people’s interests, drawing parallels with the successful opposition to the Sterlite plant in the past.
#BREAKING | கல்பாக்கம் விழாவில் முதல்வர் பங்கேற்காதது ஏன்? ஆர்.எஸ். பாரதி விளக்கம்#RSBharathi | #DMK | #MKStalin | #CMStalin pic.twitter.com/w66jI1PHaG
— PuthiyathalaimuraiTV (@PTTVOnlineNews) March 4, 2024
Speaking to reporters on the issue, Annamalai said, “I am shocked and disappointed at the DMK leaders and other political leaders for spreading false information about the Fast Breeder Reactor at Kalpakkam. Especially among them is DMK’s organisational secretary, RS Bharathi. He is putting forth his opinion as the government’s opinion. I want a clarification on this. Is this the government’s stand? Is it the Chief Minister’s stand? That the Fast Breeder Reactor must not come to TN and that they are opposing it. They must clarify it to the people.”
Annamalai further elucidated about the Fast Breeder Reactor. He said, “Today we are a 3.8 trillion dollar economy and in 3-4 years, we are looking at becoming a 5 trillion dollar economy. Our country needs energy. We are importing petrol and diesel from othr countrues. We are also generating power using coal imported from other countries, but this is unsustainable and causes global warming. Now, our country, as envisioned by Modiji, is going in the direction of renewable energy source – solar, hydel power etc. Modiji has also given a date for becoming net carbon zero at COP event.”
He further added, “What is that Fast Breeder Reactor? As we know, if you put uranium 235 in a normal atomic reactor, it is fissile material and we get energy from it. After a period of time, Uranium 235 will become spent fuel, we take it out, and again we will load Uranium 235. This is a typical atomic reactor. Today, Russia, especially in their Ural mountains, created Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor with a new type of fuel called Thorium and Uranium 238, and this fast breeder is a technology that can make neutrons go faster. Thus, we call the technology as fast breeder reactor because it can produce more fuel than the amount of fuel that is used. Many countries in the world have tried to do it but none have been able to master this technology, only Russia has mastered it and is running this reactor.”
Speaking about the historic event, he said, “India has created history today, our scientists have loaded the prototype fast breeder reactor which can be in our Kalpakkam, core loading, i.e. the core in the central part of the reactor, this is historic for AtmaNirbhar Bharat, our scientists have done it for us to prove self-reliance. It has the potential to change our fuel consumption. Today 500 MW is the beginning, as you know the Kalpakkam reactor has been providing electricity to the whole of India without any problems. On the one hand, developing India needs more electricity, and that electricity should be from renewable sources. We do not have Uranium 235, if you have to buy Uranium 235, you have to go to nuclear suppliers group NSG, negotiate and buy it from there, no one is going to give it to India. On the other hand, if we go towards Kanyakumari, Nagercoil, we have thorium there, we can convert it to Uranium 238.
My question is why is the DMK that put up the Chinese national flag having a problem? When the fuel that can be manufactured in India using its own resources? Do they want to be like China, do they want to import coal from China? Today, why is the DMK preventing us from using Thorium and Uranium 238 for our own efforts? It is very very safe. You know nuclear reactors are present all over the world, Kalpakkam is very very safe. No one will have any problem, it is under safety audit.”
Can any dravidiya politician, particularly Udayna have the capacity to talk or have the intellectual curiosity to learn about such issues ?
— dravida sishu (TNs Prashanth Kishore) (@dravidasishu) March 6, 2024
(with inputs from TNIE)
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