Civil Nuclear Liability Bill passed in Lok Sabha
New Delhi: Clearing one of the last hurdles to operationalise the Indo-USA civil nuclear agreement, the lower house of Indian Parliament on Wednesday passed the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill, 2010, stipulating how much damages the nuclear equipment suppliers would pay in the event of an accident.
The bill, which stipulates how much damages (pegged at Rs 15 billion finally from the earlier proposal of Rs 5 billion) the nuclear equipment suppliers from countries like USA would pay in the event of an accident, was passed by a voice vote Wednesday evening after it was tabled in the morning with some amendments that took care of the Opposition demands.
In the Lok Sabha, the amendment to raise the liability cap to Rs 100 billion by Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) MP Basudeb Acharia was defeated with the electronic voting machine showing 252 lawmakers rejecting the proposal against the 25 who voted in its favour.
The bill will now go to the Rajya Sabha (upper house) for ratification and then to the President of India to sign it into a law.
The ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government was keen to pass the bill ahead of US president Barack Obama visits India in November and the passage of the bill is seen as a victory of its protagonist, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The bill now make the liability in the event of a nuclear accident clear to the U.S.-based firms like General Electric and Westinghouse Electric, a subsidiary of Japan's Toshiba Corp, and pave their entry into the $150 billion nuclear power market.
Refuting that the bill was aimed at pleasing United States and its corporations, the Prime Minister said such charges are far from true.
He said: "I categorically state that this bill is a completion of journey to end the nuclear apartheid which the world had imposed on India.”
The principle Opposition party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), virtually had its way when the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill, 2010 was tabled with an amendment to a contentious clause on the liability of suppliers in case of accident in the civil nuclear damages dropped.
The rephrased amendment now reads: "the nuclear incident has resulted as a consequence of an act of supplier or his employee, which includes supply of equipment or material with patent or latent defects or sub-standard services."
The latest hurdle to the bill was a dispute over the word "intent" which meant “the nuclear incident has resulted as a consequence of an act of supplier or his employees, done with the intent to cause nuclear damage, and such act includes supply of equipment or material with patent or latent defects or sub-standard services.”
The opposition said this would provide an escape route to the suppliers in the event of an accident. The final draft that was passed deleting the word.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told the Parliament that the civil nuclear liability would not compromise India's interests and every possible safety measures and norms would be applied.
"We will do everything to strengthen the Nuclear Safety Regulatory Board. The concern over safety is one I share with the opposition," Manmohan Singh said.
The communists and the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party had earlier flayed the UPA government for allegedly protecting the interests of the foreign suppliers of nuclear equipment.
The Standing Committee on Science and Technology, which had been studying the Bill, had recommended increasing the liability cap of suppliers in case of nuclear accident from 5 billion rupees to 15 billion rupees (which was finally approved).
The Left parties wanted the cap to be raised to 100 billion rupees.
New Delhi: Clearing one of the last hurdles to operationalise the Indo-USA civil nuclear agreement, the lower house of Indian Parliament on Wednesday passed the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill, 2010, stipulating how much damages the nuclear equipment suppliers would pay in the event of an...
New Delhi: Clearing one of the last hurdles to operationalise the Indo-USA civil nuclear agreement, the lower house of Indian Parliament on Wednesday passed the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill, 2010, stipulating how much damages the nuclear equipment suppliers would pay in the event of an accident.
The bill, which stipulates how much damages (pegged at Rs 15 billion finally from the earlier proposal of Rs 5 billion) the nuclear equipment suppliers from countries like USA would pay in the event of an accident, was passed by a voice vote Wednesday evening after it was tabled in the morning with some amendments that took care of the Opposition demands.
In the Lok Sabha, the amendment to raise the liability cap to Rs 100 billion by Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) MP Basudeb Acharia was defeated with the electronic voting machine showing 252 lawmakers rejecting the proposal against the 25 who voted in its favour.
The bill will now go to the Rajya Sabha (upper house) for ratification and then to the President of India to sign it into a law.
The ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government was keen to pass the bill ahead of US president Barack Obama visits India in November and the passage of the bill is seen as a victory of its protagonist, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The bill now make the liability in the event of a nuclear accident clear to the U.S.-based firms like General Electric and Westinghouse Electric, a subsidiary of Japan's Toshiba Corp, and pave their entry into the $150 billion nuclear power market.
Refuting that the bill was aimed at pleasing United States and its corporations, the Prime Minister said such charges are far from true.
He said: "I categorically state that this bill is a completion of journey to end the nuclear apartheid which the world had imposed on India.”
The principle Opposition party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), virtually had its way when the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill, 2010 was tabled with an amendment to a contentious clause on the liability of suppliers in case of accident in the civil nuclear damages dropped.
The rephrased amendment now reads: "the nuclear incident has resulted as a consequence of an act of supplier or his employee, which includes supply of equipment or material with patent or latent defects or sub-standard services."
The latest hurdle to the bill was a dispute over the word "intent" which meant “the nuclear incident has resulted as a consequence of an act of supplier or his employees, done with the intent to cause nuclear damage, and such act includes supply of equipment or material with patent or latent defects or sub-standard services.”
The opposition said this would provide an escape route to the suppliers in the event of an accident. The final draft that was passed deleting the word.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told the Parliament that the civil nuclear liability would not compromise India's interests and every possible safety measures and norms would be applied.
"We will do everything to strengthen the Nuclear Safety Regulatory Board. The concern over safety is one I share with the opposition," Manmohan Singh said.
The communists and the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party had earlier flayed the UPA government for allegedly protecting the interests of the foreign suppliers of nuclear equipment.
The Standing Committee on Science and Technology, which had been studying the Bill, had recommended increasing the liability cap of suppliers in case of nuclear accident from 5 billion rupees to 15 billion rupees (which was finally approved).
The Left parties wanted the cap to be raised to 100 billion rupees.
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