What a load of hypocritical hogswallop. India has already had nuclear weapons for many years and despite being continuously involved in border disputes, it has not caused any problems. The authors condescending attitude towards the Indians is quite frankly appalling.

India has a huge population that is it working hard on raising out of poverty and with this comes a growing demand for electricity. What would the author have these people do, burn more coal? Or perhaps continue to live without the comforts that the author enjoys? (and please do a tiny little bit of research into the scale of the problem before you mention renewable and understand how many dams that would mean).

Grumbler's right on the money!
Demonstrably dumb Dave doesn't have a clue.
Of all the countries we need to assist with some uranium sales, it is India, which is one of a few nations heavily investing in the thorium alternative.
And that still needs some uranium oxide or plutonium to kick start it, Genius!
And if Dave would stop reading last centuries history, he would know that there's no weapons spin off in thorium. None!
A new type of thorium reactor, may even be able to produce the isotope, 233.
Which will then endlessly sustain the reaction; meaning, no oxides then needed.
But even where they are, the waste product is reduced by as much as 90%, with the remaining waste being far less toxic, with a massively reduced half life.
And fluoride thorium salt, may be the answer the solar thermal industry needs, to turn solar thermal into a fair dinkum 24/7 peak demand option.
Dave, suggest engaging brain before putting mouth into gear?
And just try to ignore the burning smell emanating from previously unused cerebral circuits.
Novel new daily use, will alleviate that problem? Hopefully? Occasionally?
It's not nuclear for power for peace, that's threatening the world pal, rather carbon!
Would you rather we sell even more coal to a billion plus Indian, Genius?
You'll have a nice day now, y'hear.
Rhrosty.

For some time I have had the honour of working alongside young and patriotic Indians who are determined to lift their fellow citizens out of poverty. It is an enormous task - one third of the world's desperately poor live within the boundaries of this nation. Yet they are determined to achieve it and I believe they will.

In the next few years they aim to end the pollution of the Holy Ganga River, provide electricity and clean water to every village, upgrade the transport system, promote economic growth to the point where every young person can look forward to employment - and that is before we even look at the acute social problems of violence against women and minorities.

And it will be done despite the objections of comfortable, middle-class radicals like Mr Sweeney who think these massive tasks can be achieved without the need for a nuclear industry. Mr Sweeney would no doubt like to put solar panels on the roofs of all Indian homes. Trouble is, Mr Sweeney, a lot of Indian homes don't have roofs that you would recognise.

India is looking at renewable power now and in the future, but it cannot possibly supply the energy needed to give 1.2 billion people an adequate standard of living in even the medium term, and we do not intend to wait for ever.

You know nothing about India, Mr Sweeney. Your remarks are insulting to this country and I treat them with the contempt they deserve.

‘morning Dave,

Don’t you think it’s time to drag yourself screaming into at least the 1990’s?

The anti-nuclear activism is so out of date. There are already close to a 1,000 nuclear reactors in operation and more being built. You don’t want coal, oil, gas or other forms of fossil fuels. You don’t want nuclear powered generation, so what energy alternative do you have to offer for the maintenance of developed nations and for opportunities for the desperately poor nations to improve the lot of their populations?

India has already taken a stand on de-carbonization, it has said sod off. They have banned Greenpeace activists who have injected the 93% funding that has been generated overseas and like Japan, Germany, Canada, Russia, China, Norway, Bangladesh, Australia, NZ and United Arab Emirates. They will not be attending the next UNFCCC gabfest to try to breath life into the Kyoto cadaver which passed away quietly in December 2012.

Of the 144 parties to Kyoto, only 11 have signed up.

Get over it, GAGW is a dead parrot, the world is getting on with economic growth driven by burning anything they can.

"There are none so blind as those who WILL not see".
When the inevitable accidents and spills happen where will all these champions of Nuke be? No doubt pointing the finger everywhere but at themselves.
Nukes are DIRTY, in mining, transport, use and disposal, and they are dirty for millennia after, but the champs blithely assume that all those problems won't cause any harm at all.
Then there's the political stability on the sub-continent, shaky at the best of times, who can predict where THAT will go?
The so-called "cheap" power is a chimera too, it's only cheap if you don't take into account infrastructure costs, government subsidies and all the associated costs of transport and disposal, include them and nuclear is far and away the costliest and most threatening possible source of power, hands down.
Contrary to the opinions above, India is an almost perfect situation for renewables, and setting up local sources is far more efficient and reliable than a reactor and all the transmission facilities required.

Dave Sweeney

You must be feeling good and Green.

But India has alternative Uranium suppliers - Kazakhstan, Russia and France - which means your whole article misses the point.

Check this August 2014 article:

"In quantitative terms, in the last four years, India received a total of 2,215 tonnes of uranium from Kazakhstan and Russia, including a shipment of 118 tonnes from Russia this fiscal. Till March 2011, the country had received 868 tonnes of uranium from France, Russia and Kazakhstan, comprising 300 tonnes of natural uranium concentrate from Areva, 58 tonnes as enriched uranium dioxide pellets from Areva, 210 tonnes as natural uranium oxide pellets from Russia’s TVEL and 300 tonnes as natural uranium from Kazatomprom."

http://indianexpress.com/article/business/business-others/as-thermal-sets-idle-kazakh-russian-uranium-imports-perk-up-nuke-power/#sthash.z6Pkr89I.dpuf