The Supreme Court of India has accepted a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) and has agreed to examine the constitutional validity of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010.

The PIL accused the government of acting under the pressure of foreign governments when it accepted to limit the compensation obligation of nuclear reactor operators to just Rs 1,500 crore. However, it is alleged that a leakage or an accident could affect a huge population.

Chief Justice S H Kapadia and Justices A K Patnaik and Swatanter Kumar did not accept the other part of the PIL that asked for a transparent safety audit of existing nuclear reactors. They bench also did not accept the part of the petition demanding setting up of an independent regulator to recommend safety measures.

"We are not experts and have scientific limitations to adjudicate highly technical issue like reactor safety. But since the Civil Liability of Nuclear Damage Act has a link to right to life, we will examine the validity of the law," the bench observed.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, who was representing NGO 'Common Cause' tried to convince the bench about the importance of independent safety audit of nuclear reactors but the bench only agreed to examine the constitutional validity of the obligation act.