Letter endorsed by Indian Scientists on their concerns about the quality of components and equipment used at the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant
May 16, 2013
A Letter to the Chief Ministers of Tamilnadu and Kerala by Indian Scientists expressing concerns about the use of substandard components in Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant 1 & 2, and the revelation at this late stage that four valves in a critical safety system were found defective.
To: Hon’ble Chief Minister
Government of Tamil Nadu
Secretariat, Chennai 600 009;
To: Hon’ble Chief Minister
Government of Kerala
Secretariat, Thiruvananthapuram 695001
Copy: Prime Minister’s Office
South Block, Raisina Hill, New Delhi 110011
Date: 14th of May 2013
Respected Chief Ministers:
We, the below-signed, are scientists from various disciplines who are concerned about the quality of components and equipment used at the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNP) Units 1 & 2. Our concerns arise from recent media reports about the use of substandard components in KKNP 1 & 2, and the revelation at this late stage that four valves in a critical safety system were found defective.
These safety concerns are compounded by the fact that Russian authorities arrested Mr. Sergei Shutov, procurement director of Zio-Podolsk, on corruption charges for having sourced cheaper sub-standard steel for manufacturing components that were used in Russian nuclear installations in Bulgaria, Iran, China and India. This has led to several complaints of sub-standard components and follow-up investigations in Bulgaria and China. The ramifications of such corruption need to be taken very seriously as they have implications on the long-term safety of the nuclear plant.
As the Chief Minister of the states hosting and neighbouring the nuclear power plant, the two of you have a responsibility to satisfy yourself and the residents of Tamil Nadu and Kerala that the plant has been constructed to the highest safety standards. Any exercise to assure oneself of the quality of components used will have to be done before the plant is commissioned. Once commissioned, the radioactive environment in sections of the plant will make it impossible to access and test some potentially critical components.
Unfortunately, as we have seen in Fukushima, there is the danger that the impact of a major hazardous event in Koodankulam may not be localized but could spread to larger regions in both Tamil Nadu and Kerala. To reduce such a risk, in the light of recent revelations, we believe that it is important to have a fresh independent and thorough quality inspection of the components used in the two reactors.
We, the below-signed, include scientists who believe that nuclear energy has a legitimate role in securing our energy future and others that believe that nuclear energy is too risky. Through this letter, we are not advocating for or against nuclear energy. All of us are of the opinion that when dealing with complex and potentially dangerous technologies transparency, honesty and a rigorous adherence to the highest quality standards are imperative. Even the Supreme Court’s recent judgment has emphasized the need to ensure the quality of components and systems before operationalising the plant.
We urge you to convey to the Prime Minister and the Department of Atomic Energy that before commissioning the reactors, they should consult independent national experts to formulate an inspection regime and carry out a full-fledged inspection into the safety of KKNP 1 & 2. Such an inspection should pay particular attention to the allegations of sub-standard equipment and components.
Signed by,
| Name | Designation | Dept/Specialization | Affiliation | City |
| Atul Chokshi | Professor | Materials Engg. | IISc | Bangalore |
| Subodh Kumar | Professor | Materials Engg. | IISc | Bangalore |
| Debasis Sengupta | Professor | Oceanography | IISc | Bangalore |
| Bikramjit Basu | Assoc. Professor | Materials Science & Engg | IISc | Bangalore |
| Venu Madhav Govindu | Asst. Professor | Electrical engg | IISc | Bangalore |
| Siddhartha P. Sarma | Assoc. Professor | Molecular biophysics | IISc | Bangalore |
| Vidyanand Nanjundiah | Professor | Ecological sciences | IISc | Bangalore |
| Sanjit Chaterjee | Asst. Professor | Computer sci. & automation | IISc | Bangalore |
| K.S. Gandhi | Professor | Chemical engg | IISc | Bangalore |
| A.G. Menon | Professor | Earth sciences | IISc | Bangalore |
| Bhanu Pratap Das | Senior Professor | Astrophysics | IIA | Bangalore |
| Vandana Shiva | Environmentalsit/Physicist | Navadanya | New Delhi | |
| Sushma V. Mallik | Assoc. Professor | Astrophysics | IIA | Bangalore |
| C.V. Mallik | Professor (ret’d) | Astrophysics | IIA | Bangalore |
| Rohini Balakrishnan | Assoc. Professor | Ecological sciences | IISc | Bangalore |
| Mahua Ghare | post-doc | Ecological sciences | Centre for Pollination Studies | Kolkata |
| Ravi Sankar Kottada | Asst. ProfessorI | Materials Engg. | IITM | Chennai |
| Partho Sarothi Ray | Asst. Professor | Phsyics | IISER | Kolkata |
| Shiv Sethi | Assoc. Professor | Astrophysics | RRI | Bangalore |
| Meher Engineer | Professor/ex-director | Bose Institute | Kolkata | |
| K.S. Jagadish | Professor (ret’d) | Civil engg | IISc | Bangalore |
| Supratik Chakraborty | Professor | IITB | Mumbai | |
| Deepak D’Souza | Assoc. Professor | IISc | Bangalore | |
| MJNV Prasad | Asst. Professor | Materials Engg. | IITB | Mumbai |
| Kartik Shanker | Assoc. Professor | Ecological sciences | IISc | Bangalore |
| Dibyendu Chakravarty | Scientist D | Materials Engg. | ARCI | Hyderabad |
| T.A. Abinandanan | Professor | Materials Engg. | IISc | Bangalore |
| K.V.S. Hari | Professor | Elec & comm engg | IISc | Bangalore |
| C.P. Rajendran | Visiting Professor | Earth sciences | IISc | Bangalore |
| Arijit Bishnu | Assoc. Professor | ISI | Kolkata | |
| Renee Borges | Professor & Chairperson | Ecological sciences | IISc | Bangalore |
| Lakshmi Saripalli | Astrophysicist | RRI | Bangalore | |
| Vijay Chandru | Chairman and CEO | Management/Comp sci. & automation | Strand | Bangalore |
| Sumati Surya | Assoc. Professor | Physics | RRI | Bangalore |
| Sachindeo Vaidya | Assoc. Professor | Physics | IISc | Bangalore |
| Procheta Mallik | none | Physics | none | Bangalore |
| Sushama Yermal | Instructor | Biologist | IISc | Bangalore |
| Palash B. Pal | Professor | Astrophysics | Saha Inst. | Kolkata |
| M.S. Bobji | Assoc. Professor | Mechanical Engg | IISc | Bangalore |
| Gopal Krishna | NASI platinum Jubilee Senior Scientist | Astrophysics | TIFR (retired)/IUCAA | Pune |
| Harish Bhatt | Professor | Astrophysics | IIA | Bangalore |
| Arati Chokshi | none | Astrophysics | none | Bangalore |
| Vinod John | Asst. Professor | IISc | Bangalore | |
| Dileep Jatkar | Professor | HCRI | Allahabad | |
| Anshuman Maharana | Reader | HCRI | Allahabad | |
| Naresh Dadhich | Professor | IUCAA | Pune | |
| Vikram Vyas | Professor | Shiv Nadir Univ | UP | |
| Krsihnendu Sengupta | Professor | IACS | Kolkata | |
| Suvrat Raju | Reader | Physics | TIFR | Bangalore |
| Abhishek Dhar | Professor | TIFR | Bangalore | |
| R.I. Kaveri | post-doc | Ecological sciences | IISc | Bangalore |
| Ashok Pati | Professor | Astrophysics | IIA | Bangalore |
| Joseph Samuel | Professor | Physics | RRI | Bangalore |
| Carol Upadhyaya | Professor | Social sciences | NIAS | Bangalore |
| Madan Rao | Professor | Phsyics | RRI | Bangalore |
| Sujay Basu | ex-Professor/director | Energy | Jadavpur Univ/Centre of Energy and Environment Management | Kolkata |
| Prajwal Shastri | Astrophysics | IIA | Bangalore | |
| Anjula Gurtoo | Assoc. Professor | Management/Comp sci. & automation | IISc | Bangalore |
| Sudhir Vombatkere | Major General (ret’d) | Civil engg | none | Mysore |
Affiliations: IISc=Indian Institute of Science, RRI=Raman Research Institute; TIFR=Tata Institute of Fundamental Research; IIA = Indian Institute of Astrophysics; IISER = Indian Institute of Science Education and Research; IACS = Indian Institute for the Cultivation of Science; NIAS = National Institute of Advanced Studies; IUCAA = Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics; IITM = Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, IITB = Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay; HCRI = Harish Chandra Research Institute
