This Article is From Sep 06, 2013

Trial runs completed at Kudankulam nuclear plant, production to start soon

New Delhi: Production at the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) is expected to start within 15-20 days as the trials runs have been completed, Union Minister V Narayanasamy said today.

"We will start production at the plant within 15-20 days as we have completed the trial run. The power production will slowly start. The second unit will start by March or April as around 95 per cent of the work is over," the Minister of state for Personnel and Public Grievances said on the sidelines of a conclave on nuclear energy.

Terming Kudankulam as a "challenge", Mr Narayanasamy said NGOs and groups involved in the agitation against the plant were funded by foreign agencies and the Home Ministry had suspended the companies involved in it.

"I do not know if they spent the money or not but I openly said that I got the bank accounts and where the money came. Even now, certain groups... people who retired from the department of nuclear energy and some outside people with the aid and support of foreign agency have been trying to scuttle our nuclear energy programme," the minister said.

"The Home Ministry has suspended the banking operations of about six companies and an enquiry has been started against them. But those people were getting foreign money for the  purpose of charitable work and were actively involved in anti-nuclear power activities," he said.
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