Clean energy? Modi-Trump nuclear bonhomie: India to 'buy' America’s nuclear junk?

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak 

Clean energy security is central to India's economic growth and sustainable development. However, nuclear power plants take 5 to 17 years longer to construct from planning to production. Additionally, nuclear power emits 23 times more carbon per unit of electricity generated than onshore wind power and costs five times more per kilowatt. The operational cost of nuclear power plants is significantly high, making them an expensive and less viable energy source compared to renewable alternatives. 

The Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters highlight the severe risks of nuclear power, including meltdowns, radioactive waste, proliferation concerns, and pollution of land, air and water—factors that significantly increase cancer risks on a large scale. Uranium is essential for nuclear power plants, but specialists warn that mining uranium is akin to mining cancer due to its severe health and environmental risks. Therefore, nuclear energy is neither clean nor sustainable due to its high production costs and associated risks. It is also not a viable solution to the climate crisis India faces daily.

Historically, American technological embargo on India was detrimental to Indian technological progress. American continues to discriminate India by putting restrictions on access to AI chips technology and Solar technology to India but Hindutva led ruling class represented by Mr Narendra Modi continues to run behind Yankee imperialism by sacrificing Indian independent foreign policy and dignity of India.  Modi-Trump Nuclear Bonhomie is part of this servitude of Hindutva politics that undermines the dignity of Indians. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump have decided to expand American nuclear reactors in India "through large-scale localisation and possible technology transfer."

The Modi-led BJP government is amending policies to align with the interests of American nuclear power corporations. Meanwhile, the American corporate leadership, under Mr. Trump, seeks to revive U.S. nuclear corporations by facilitating the transfer of Indian wealth and resources to America. The Modi government is advancing American interests by supporting the revival of technologically outdated and weakening American nuclear power corporations. The push to bring more American atomic reactors to India will not benefit Indian interests in any way.

All American power companies have refrained from ordering new nuclear power plants after 1973. Since 1978, no American power company has made an order for nuclear reactors. As a result, domestic manufacturing capacity for nuclear reactors and its components have dwindled, leading to a decline in nuclear reactor technology. This has also contributed to a shortage of trained personnel in the field. Consequently, American nuclear power plants and reactor technologies are now outdated. Therefore, purchasing outdated nuclear technology only benefits American companies and serves to uphold American interests, rather than advancing India's energy goals.

In the long term, instead of reviving the American nuclear industry, India must invest in research and development to create its own technology, ensuring the country's future energy needs are met sustainably. In the interim, India could establish research partnerships with advanced nuclear reactor-producing countries like China and France to learn from their technological advancements. This approach would be far more beneficial than purchasing outdated American nuclear technological junks.

Nuclear power is incredibly hazardous, and the working people will ultimately pay for it with their lives. Additionally, nuclear power is extremely expensive, and working individuals will bear the burden of higher electricity costs. The higher cost of nuclear energy will drive up energy prices, leading to an increase in the cost of essential commodities. As a result, working Indians will bear the burden, while American nuclear corporations will benefit from the revival of their outdated nuclear industry. Therefore, it is crucial to expose the Hindutva bonhomie with Yankee imperialism in order to protect the interests of India and its people.

Hindutva is another name for corporate politics and policies that serves the interests of global, regional, national, and provincial capitalist classes, rather than the people in India. It works for capitalism, not for the welfare of the masses. It is time to expose the anti-people, anti-India Hindutva government led by Mr. Modi, while also unveiling the emptiness of the so-called "clean nuclear energy" provided by outdated American nuclear reactors.