Work on Jaitpur project likely to commence next year

"The commencement of work of the first two units is planned for the year 2012," Sudhinder Thakur, Distinguished Scientist & Fellow of NPCIL, said in a statement.

Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL), in collaboration with French company Areva, plans to build six nuclear power plants of 1,650 MW each at Jaitapur.

The Jaitapur project received a conditional go ahead from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests last year and is battling issues related to land acquisition.

"The land acquisition and related relief and rehabilitation issues are being handled in consultation with the state (Maharashtra) government," Thakur said.

The environment impact assessment report for the Jaitapur nuclear power project was prepared by National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI).

"There are no green issues at Jaitapur. With the clearance of the project by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, NPCIL is in full gear for compliance of the requirements," Thakur said.

The Jaitapur project is a result of the India-France civil nuclear cooperation agreement, the first pact India signed after getting a waiver from the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG) guidelines in September 2008 to engage in global nuclear trade.