Is the writ maintainable or not?

It is humbly submitted that the petitioners has approached the Honourable Supreme Court
under Article 32 of the Indian Constitution. Article 32(1) guarantees the right to move the
Supreme Court by “appropriate proceedings” for the enforcement of fundamental rights
conferred by Part III of the Constitution. The present petition is maintainable, as the issue in
question falls squarely within the ambit of "matters of public importance", as per the Supreme
Court Guidelines.

Though PIL filed against The Kundankulam Nuclear Plant was upheld with safety guidelines
in G. Sundrarrajan v. Union of India1, and the advantages of setting up an Nuclear Power Plant
are much more in a country like India, yet under the facts and circumstances existing in
Vanasthalam, Uri setting up a Nuclear Plant is much more detrimental than beneficial.

The establishment of the Vanasthalam nuclear power plant (VNPP) violates the rights of citizen
given under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. In Kharak Singh v. State of Punjab2 it was
held that the expression life was not limited to bodily restraint or confinement to prison only
but something more than a mere animal existence.

The plant is being established in a populated area despite the fact that four villages including
Vanasthalam fall within the exclusion zone of 1.5 km whereas current mandatory requirement
of AERB siting code given by the Government of India is that an exclusion zone of atleast
1.5km radius around the plant is to be established and this area should be under the exclusive
control of the station wherein public habitation is prohibited. This puts the life of the people
residing in those village in grave danger. Even though it is mandated that there should be no
habitation in the prohibited exclusion zone there are 4 villages in the exclusion zone of VNPP.

Another ten villages within the sterilized zone and a total sum of 113 villages within the
emergency planning zone. One lakh people live in the emergency planning zone. Since
Vanasthalam is in a cyclone prone region and it lies in Zone II of the seismic zoning map of
Uri, their evacuation would be a hectic task if an accident occurs and there are high chances
that human life may be affected in a major way. Approximately 3500 people would be
displaced from the project site.

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2
AIR 1963 SC 1295
The right to live peacefully and in safe surroundings of all these residents will be affected if
the Vanasthalam nuclear power plant is established.

The Government with an objective to establish the power plant hastily did not follow the
protocol for doing so in a proper way. The due process to be followed for the establishment of
such power plant is not properly done. And because of this the faults of the plant are not
properly estimated and asserted. This puts the plant and the people living around it in a risk of
radiation or other such dangers.

Therefore it can be said that the fundamental right of the residents under Article 21 is being
violated. And the writ, thus, is maintainable.