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PM meets nuke scientists today
They raise doubts about the perpetuity of nuclear restraint and safeguards at N-facilities, following Indo-US deal.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will seek to allay scientists' fears over the Indo-US nuclear deal when he meets a group of nuclear scientists and members of the Atomic Energy Commission in the capital on Saturday.
The meeting with the scientists is taking place at a time when the agreement with the United States on civil nuclear cooperation has come under attack from political parties and the scientific community.
Former AEC chairmen HN Sethna, MR Srinivasan and PK Iyengar, former Atomic Energy Regulatory Board chairman A Gopalkrishnan, former Nuclear Power Corporation managing directors SL Kati and YSR Prasad, former Bhabha Atomic Research Centre director AN Prasad, and former Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research chief Placid Rodriguez are among those who have been called by the Prime Minister for the deliberations.
He will also have a meeting with AEC members. The AEC is chaired by Anil Kakodkar and its members are Minister of State in PMO Prithviraj Chavan, National Security Advisor MK Narayanan, Principal Secretary to PM TKA Nair, Cabinet Secretary BK Chaturvedi, Department of Economic Affairs Secretary AK Jha, eminent scientist CNR Rao, former AEC chairman MR Srinivasan, former Atomic Energy Regulatory Board chairman P Rama Rao, BARC Director Srikumar Banerjee and Head of the Management Service Group of Department of Atomic Energy, K Muralidhar.
Singh had assured the House that his government would work for "broad national consensus" on the issue.
As a part of the process, the Prime Minister is meeting a group of eight nuclear scientists who had raised doubts about the perpetuity of nuclear restraint and safeguards at nuclear facilities among other issues.
