Human cost of Indian nuclear industry  Australian Greens nuclear policy spokesperson Senator Scott  Ludlam. 30 October 2012.

Revelations of two major radioactive leaks endangering workers at an Indian  nuclear power station strengthens the case against selling uranium to India, the  Australian Greens said today.

Indian press outlets are reporting that an IAEA team has arrived in India to  assess the scale of the leaks at the Rawatbhata nuclear complex in Rajasthan.

Greens nuclear policy spokesperson Senator Scott Ludlam said the mass  radiation exposures of plant workers showed the human side of the Indian  Auditor General’s damning assessment of the state of the industry.

“Last month, Auditor General Vinod Rai’s report on nuclear regulation in India  highlighted a series of grave organisational and operational flaws, and raised  serious concerns about the lack of independence of the Regulation Board.

“At the site of a nuclear reactor in Koodankulam police have used brutal tactics  against tens of thousands of peaceful protestors. There were more than 2000  arrests overnight near the Tamil Nadu Assembly in Chennai.

“The IAEA inspection comes more than three months after managers at the plant  reported that more than 40 workers had been exposed to tritium radiation in two  separate leaks over the summer.

“A team from the UN nuclear watchdog - the IAEA - is now inspecting  Rajasthan Atomic Power Station to, in their words, ‘review the programmes and  activities essential to plant operation based on the IAEA safety standards and on  proven good practices’.  This is the first time New Delhi has asked the  International Atomic Energy Agency to inspect an Indian plant.

“In the meantime, the suggestion that Australia should sell uranium to fuel these  plants is beyond comprehension. “



Media contact:  Giovanni Torre - 0417 174 302

