No plan to relax liability clause in nuclear act: Govt

The government on Thursday said there was no proposal to relax the liability clause of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damages Act 2010, as demanded by foreign collaborators assisting the country in its nuclear power generation pursuit. Responding to questions over the issue, V Narayanasamy, minister of state in the PMO, said there is no plan to relax the provisions of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 to benefit American firm Westinghouse Corporation or any other company. The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) is negotiating with Westinghouse Corporation to build nuclear plant reactors in Mithi Virdhi, Gujarat. Many foreign collaborators, like France and Russia, have been pressing for relaxation of the liability clause of the act, which enables the operators to sue the suppliers (the foreign collaborators) in case of any nuclear disaster.