Energy experts state that agitations against the nuclear power plant will not affect the outcome but will cause a dent in the cost of the entire project

While protests in Jaitapur have acquired a political hue, experts don't see why a big hue and cry has been raised, as the entire project will not see the light of day for the next eight years and the final outcome of the project would not be affected. "We are still in the process of discussion with Areva, the French company that is providing the two reactors to the Jaitapur power plant. We are yet to work on a contract with the company and if everything goes well, then the site designs will commence, which will take another two years (2013) and then another five years for completion of the actual construction work. This means that Jaitapur would actually start operations not before 2018," explained a senior official from Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL).

SK Malhotra, Head, Public Awareness Division, Department of Atomic Energy, said, "Ignorance is bliss. People had earlier protested for the hydropower project at Narmada. Several innocents died while protesting stating that solar power was the best alternative and now that nuclear power is the need of the hour, they are proclaiming that solar and hydro-electricity are the best alternatives."

Malhotra cautioned that while such delays would not cause a major delay in the project, the delays would cause the cost of the project to increase manifold sighting instances like the Narmada project and the Tehri Dam in Uttarakhand where agitations had a major impact on the costs. While several protesters debate the safety of a nuclear power plant following the radiation leak at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant in Japan, experts state that the plant will have six reactors each having independent safety systems that will take care of any accidents.

"The Jaitapur site is 25 metres above sea level and neither a floor nor a tsunami will affect the plant unlike what we saw at Fukushima. The state government has acquired a land of 938 hectares of land in Jaitapur of which 70 per cent is barren land," added the NPCIL official.u00a0The official also added that those who worried about the environment being affected by pollution caused by the plant could heave a sigh of relief, as nuclear energy is a clean and green source and the released pollutants would not affect the environment or marine life.u00a0