Haripur Nuclear Power Plant

The proposal to build a nuclear power plant in West Bengal first came during the regime of former Chief Minister Jyoti Bose. With the help of France, a nuclear power plant in the Sagar Island was proposed. But the proposal was shelved due to opposition from the CPIM party. The Nuclear Power Corporation of India proposed to build a nuclear power plant at Haripur in 2006. The then Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya agreed to the proposal, while the CPM opposed the proposal. The then opposition Trinamool Congress opposed the project. A section of state environmentalists also opposed the project.[2]

During former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Russia in late 2009, government approval was given to the proposed nuclear-power project at Haripur.[1] During this visit, India signed an agreement with Russia to build five nuclear power plants, Haripur being one of them. The Twelfth Five Year Plan decided to build two nuclear reactors in the first phase at Haripur, and four nuclear reactors at Kurankulam in Tamil Nadu. The Government of India also referred the Russian firm Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation to build a nuclear park with 1,000 MW units at Haripur.[1] But, the Russian company proposed to shift the nuclear power plant to Odisha. The proposal was rejected by all, including the Prime Minister's Secretariat and the Atomic Energy Commission.[1] On the other hand, the then ruling Trinamool-Congress coalition government of West Bengal rejected the proposed Haripur nuclear power project in 2011.[1][3][4]

In 2015, an office called "Haripur Nuclear Park" is open in Kolkata.[5] Haripur was among the five sites approved 'in principle' by the Government of India in January 2019 for setting up more reactors in the future.[6]

Local residents started protesting against land acquisition after the announcement of the plan to set up the power plant at Haripur.[5] The people successfully resisted the observation team of the NPCIL from entering Haripur for two consecutive days on 17th and 18th November 2006. A protest meeting was organized on 28 November at Junput Bus Stand, where around 15,000 people gathered to protest against the proposed project. An organization named Haripur Paramanu Vidyut Prokalpa Pratirodh Andolon (English:Haripur Nuclear Power Project Resistance Movement) was formed to conduct the movement in various parts of West Bengal.[7]