It is only in Bengal that resistance to change passes for progressive thinking. It is difficult, otherwise, to make sense of the scepticism in some quarters over the proposed nuclear power-plant in East Midnapore. Energy security and clean energy are two major concerns of nations around the world. It should, therefore, be good news for Bengal that the nuclear power corporation has finally decided to set up one of the six new plants in the state. There are two significant aspects to the project, one relating to energy and the other to the overall economic development of the state. Everyone agrees that nuclear power is the cleanest form of energy. It is also the ultimate answer to the complex challenge posed by more polluting sources of energy. And energy deficiency can cripple a state’s industrial as well as agrarian development. If it comes up, the nuclear power-plant will be not only the first in eastern India but also the biggest in the country so far. The project is estimated to cost Rs 60,000 crore. No venture of this scale has ever been planned anywhere in eastern India. All this should suggest that this single project can go a long way in changing Bengal’s economy. The state government had been pleading its case for a nuclear power-plant with the Centre for many years. Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has proved once again that he can win friends in New Delhi with his economic arguments.

However, a nuclear power project raises issues that need to be carefully addressed. An alarmist response to the idea can only complicate matters. Any project that results in the displacement of people requires the government to plan an accommodative strategy. The government should be wiser by its experience with the political and administrative challenges that it faces over the Tata group’s proposed automobile project at Singur. Governments in India are known to be messy about paying compensation and implementing rehabilitation packages for the people displaced by large projects. In addition to all these issues, a nuclear power project raises environmental and security concerns. The country now has sixteen such plants and these have not faced any major environmental or security-related problems so far. But that is no reason to ignore such threats. All these concerns, though, do not outweigh the benefits — and the necessity — of nuclear power.