The Madras High Court on Friday gave the green signal for the commissioning of the units one and two of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) in Tirunelveli district. However, it made it clear that the regulatory authorities should periodically oversee the compliance and maintenance of standards of pollution. “By taking note of the overall situation, we are of the view that the KKNPP in respect of units 1 and 2 do not suffer from any infirmities either for want of any clearance from any of the authorities, including the MoEF, AERB, TNPCB and the Department of Atomic Energy, and there is absolutely no impediment for the NPCIL to proceed with the project,” a division bench comprising Justices P. Jyothimani and M. Duraiswamy said in its common order on a batch of writ petitions pertaining to the project. In its order running into nearly 300 pages, the bench said the Tirunelveli District Collector should take appropriate steps for conducting offshore drill periodically in all villages. The Tamil Nadu government should initiate the developmental schemes contemplated by it for the villages around the plant immediately. The court concurred with the former president, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s suggestion to establish a multispeciality hospital with all facilities in the area, apart from establishing various schools with CBSE and state government syllabus with hostel facilities to provide the best education for the children in the area. Infrastructural facilities should be provided for fishermen for repair of mechanised boats in and around Kudankulam. After going through the records, the bench held that there was no violation of environmental safeguards and various safety and other aspects of KKNPP were being monitored continuously by various authorities. As and when required, the authorities could always give suitable directions for maintaining ecological balance. An expert committee, appointed by the Tamil Nadu government, had categorically stated that historically there had never been a big earthquake or tsunami in Kudankulam area. Enormous safety measures had been taken by the government. “There is absolutely no reason to disbelieve the report of the expert committee appointed by the state government,” the bench observed.