Rooppur fuel loading: To rejoice or worry?

While many may consider entering the club of nuclear power generation a giant step forward, my humble knowledge impels me to think that it would only add to the unendurable anguish and miseries that the country is already burdened with, for undertaking another economically counterproductive and immensely hazardous project aimed at plundering the government exchequer.

Without delving into technical minutiae, the following points provide sufficient evidence of the project's futility in terms of economic viability and technical complexity, especially in view of the colossal costs incurred: (a) the massive cost, with frequent escalation, now stands at approximately US$ 13 billion; (b) a plant of similar capacity (2×1200 MW) was set up by the same Russian supplier, Rosatom, at less than half the cost under more favourable conditions; (c) more than 50 per cent of the increased cost was allegedly taken as kickbacks by Hasina and members of her family, resulting in murky terms and conditions related to operation, safety, fuel supply, and waste disposal; (d) total dependence on Russian operators due to the near absence of technical knowledge and experience among Bangladeshi technicians and engineers; and (e) serious environmental concerns about a potential catastrophic accident, given the project's location on the bank of the Padma River and its proximity to an earthquake zone.

Needless to say, beyond mere showboating, the entire scheme was undertaken with the primary objective of squandering and siphoning off public funds overseas by those responsible.

We need to wait and see if the present political leadership makes an honest effort to minimise potential hazards and recover the country's plundered wealth.

The question, however, is this: can and should a poor country like Bangladesh, faced with the urgent task of ensuring basic human needs such as food, healthcare, education, shelter, and clothing, afford to spend such a colossal amount on a project when traditional power plants with three times the nuclear plant's capacity and far fewer hazards could be built at the same cost?

Lt Col Mudassir Hossain Khan (retd),

Bir Protik, Dhaka.