The inauguration of the Rooppur power plant puts Bangladesh on the path to greater, cheaper power generation, which will certainly be a boon for the economy, but the hanging sceptre of potential nuclear disaster is not something that can be brushed aside as a mitigated matter.
The PM’s confidence in Russia’s ability to design a reactor that can withstand any and every man-made or natural disaster is encouraging, but our politicians are renowned for their hubris - something that would be extremely unwise at this particular juncture, given the catastrophic consequences of getting it wrong.
Managing nuclear energy requires a well-developed sense of responsibility, and very little about the way things are handled in this country suggest that we possess that attribute at the requisite levels.
When we struggle with waste management of a more organic kind, and have trouble keeping our sewers and drains properly serviced, the thought of seeing the same callous approach applied to nuclear waste disposal is a very worrying one.
Though the agreement requires the Russians to deal with waste management themselves, it’s likely that the process will involve Bangladeshi administrators, who (as we know well but the Russians might not) aren’t always people with the safest pair of hands.
In an age where meticulous nations like Japan are shutting down their nuclear reactors because of inherent hazards, our decision to start one up is something that must be paid very close attention to.
