The Hindu : National : “Do not allow parties to hijack deal”

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Friday, Aug 31, 2007
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“Do not allow parties to hijack deal”

Nuclear agreement with United States is in national interest, say former scientists of BARC

Agreement will in no way hamper atomic progress, say scientists
“Weapons programme will continue as it has always continued”

Mumbai: Noting that the India-U.S. nuclear deal was in the interest of the country, former scientists of the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) have said that the agreement should not be hijacked by political parties.

“With the country’s ever-increasing energy needs and with a view to ending the 33-year-long nuclear isolation, the importance of the deal has to be understood by the people of India and should not be hijacked by the Opposition and the parties supporting the government,” the scientists said in a statement.

They condemned the Opposition and the Left parties for questioning the integrity of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over the civilian nuclear agreement.

“India-U.S. Cooperation on the Civilian Nuclear Programme and the Agreement is now being called a ‘deal’ and our Prime Minister is being targeted as if he has made some underhand ‘deal’ with the U.S.,” the statement said.

“Some political parties, including ones supporting the government, are doubting the integrity of the Prime Minister and this is a matter of national shame,” said the statement signed by A.K. Anand, former Director, Reactor Projects Group and Director Technical Coordination and International Relations Group, and others.

“The Opposition is talking of the Hyde Act and saying that if India carries out a nuclear test in future, all nuclear cooperation will end. But we do not even know if at all and when, in the distant future, a test will be required by the nation,” it said.

The statement, which has been widely circulated among the nuclear scientists and industries, pointed out that the whole agreement is about the civilian nuclear cooperation and in no way will it hamper the weapons programme.

“Our weapons programme will continue as it always has been, with our own reactors, reprocessing plants, enrichment plants and heavy water plants.

“We are not going to be giving the design and technology to any one; why, then are we pointing out that the U.S. will not give these technologies as part of the civilian agreement?”

Dwelling on the past tests and India’s strengths, they said, “We had been isolated because of sanctions since 1974. The DAE [Department of Atomic Energy] scientists, engineers and technologists took up the challenge and after more than 30 years’ efforts have brought the nation to this stage of strength and pride which has made the western countries shake hands with us.”

The politicians should not think about scuttling the whole process of integration, they added. “But after all the recognition, why should we go back to isolation as we fear that future isolation may be more severe,” they cautioned. — PTI

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