The Hindu Business Line : Keen to enter nuclear power, if allowed: Tata

The recent Indo-US joint declaration on civil nuclear energy cooperation must have given a very strong indicator of things to come for Mr Ratan Tata, Chairman of the Tata group, to have said what he did at the Tata Power AGM on Thursday.

In the event that Indo-US cooperation takes a form where the possibility of nuclear power production by the private sector becomes a reality in India ... ... then... "should that happen, this company would like to be involved in that also," said Mr Tata.

Mr Tata would know. He was part of the CEO team that accompanied the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh's US visit this July.

The joint declaration by the two leaders said: "The President told the Prime Minister that he will work to achieve full civil nuclear energy cooperation with India as it realises its goals of promoting nuclear power and achieving energy security... "

"The President would also seek agreement from Congress to adjust US laws and policies, and the United States will work with friends and allies to adjust international regimes to enable full civil nuclear energy cooperation and trade with India, including but not limited to expeditious consideration of fuel supplies for safeguarded nuclear reactors at Tarapur," said the declaration.

The declaration also mentioned that the countries would "Revitalise the US-India Economic Dialogue and launch a CEO Forum to harness private sector energy and ideas to deepen the bilateral economic relationship."

And should the Tata group ever get into atomic power, this would mean a reassociation of sorts for it with matters nuclear.

J.R.D. Tata was a member of the Atomic Energy Commission from the time of its inception in 1948 till 1977, when he was removed from the commission by the Janata Party Government, according to the book A Life of JRD Tata, a biography of the industrialist by R.M. Lala.

Another well-known advocate of nuclear energy, Mr Homi Sethna, has also been associated with Tata Power as its erstwhile Chairman.

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