Panaji, March 15 (IANS) The central government should chalk out a foolproof strategy to protect the Kaiga nuclear power plant, which was giving Goa "constant nightmares" in the wake of the tsunami-triggered crisis at Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant, a local Congress MP said Tuesday.
The plant is less than 25 km from the coastal state's southern border with Karnataka.
Goa Rajya Sabha MP Shantaram Naik said in a statement released here, quoting his speech in parliament, that the government should ensure that the horrific Fukushima experience does not get repeated in this coastal state.
"Nuclear power plants are established to meet power needs of the country, but although the Kaiga nuclear power project is close to Goa, the state itself has not benefited from it," Naik said.
"Goa has not been allotted any power from the plant," he added.
The Congress MP also said that the Kaiga plant was giving Goa "constant nightmares".
He further said a study conducted by environmental engineer Shivaji Rao submitted to the Goa government had estimated that evacuation of 2-5 km area around the reactor must be completed within six hours; within 12 hours for an area 5-25 km away, within 24 hours for an area 25-75 km away and within 48 hours for distances beyond 75 km of an accident.
"As far as Goa is concerned, areas up to Quepem and Chauri fall within 77 km of Kaiga; while Panaji, Ponda and Bicholim are within 115 km of the nuclear plant," Naik said.
Local environmental activists have also cautioned against the setting up of the Jaitapur nuclear power plant towards the north in Ratnagiri district in Maharashtra.
The controversial nuclear project has also resulted in the death of a protester, Yusuf Kazi, 40, who died during an agitation against the proposed Jaitapur plant in December last year.
"The Fukushima incident is a serious warning for an environmentally and socially fragile state like Goa," said activist Kalanand Mani, who runs Peaceful Society, an NGO operating from Goa.
"The state could become an atomic sandwich between Kaiga and Jaitapur as environmental destruction does not know state boundaries," he added.