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India on Wednesday (February 4) inked a commercial agreement with French company Areva to set up atomic power plants within the country. The signing of the contract ends up India's 34 years of nuclear isolation. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the officials of the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited and Areva. Minister of State in PMO Prithviraj Chavan and visiting French Minister of State for Foreign Trade Anne Marie Idrac were also present at the occasion.
The three-decade ban on nuclear trade with India was lifted on last September when the 45 nations which make up the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG) gave their approval. The ban on nuclear trade with India was imposed in 1974 when the country carried out its first nuclear test explosion. The newly signed deal with Areva is India's first commercial agreement for nuclear reactors supply. In December, India signed a contract with Areva for importing 300 tonnes of natural uranium.
After getting the NSG's waiver, India has signed intergovernmental civil nuclear cooperation agreements with France, Russia, the US and Kazakhstan. India's nuclear programme gathered momentum when on February 2 it signed a nuclear inspection accord with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Once the inspection accord get the ratification of the government, nuclear fuel supplied by Areva can be used in Rajasthan Atomic Power Station units.
