view: Mystery of Indian scientist’s death —Haleema Saadia

view: Mystery of Indian scientist’s death —Haleema Saadia
Daily Times --- 22/06/09
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009\06\22\story_22-6-2009_pg3_5

Stories surrounding the nuclear scientist’s suicide seem quite dubious. Mental health professionals generally agree that anyone contemplating suicide desires a swift death. Why would Mahalingam choose torturous and slow death? Did somebody throw him in the river?The dead body of an Indian nuclear scientist Lokanathan Mahalingam was found six days after he mysteriously went missing. According to the police he committed suicide by jumping into the Kali River in Kaiga township in Karwar, Karnataka.The stories surrounding the nuclear scientist’s suicide seem quite dubious. Mental health professionals generally agree that anyone contemplating suicide desires a swift death. Why would Mahalingam choose torturous and slow death? Did somebody throw him in the river? Was he injured or murdered before his body was thrown into the flooded Kali River? Whether Mahalingam was thrown into the river or he willingly offered his life to the powerful currents is going to remain a mystery since his remains have been cremated. A DNA test was performed to ascertain the identity of the dead body because his family members feared that the authorities might have handed over the dead body of someone else. They expected foul play which is why they demanded DNA testing. But that also raises the question: why was he cremated in such a hurry even before the results of the DNA test and the post-mortem report? The presence or absence of air in his lungs, any signs of torture on his body and the level of decomposition could have pointed out to the circumstances in which he met his final end.It is also intriguing that shortly after his body was found by the naval divers, the police announced its verdict that the scientist had committed suicide. The conclusion was premature since Mahalingam left no suicide note, another normal practice with those planning to commit suicide. How could the police state with certainty if the death was suicide? Reports suggest it could be an attempt to quash rumours of the scientist’s kidnapping and subsequent murder. But by acting thus the authorities have disregarded the efforts and contribution of Mahalingam to the Indian nuclear programme and have done a disservice to his family. By ignoring the possibility of target killing, they have subjected their nuclear scientists and engineers to a life of threat and danger. What would be the response of Indian nuclear establishment if another one of their personnel having access to sensitive nuclear information met a similar end? Even if this version of Mahalingam’s death is accepted, the suicide of an Indian nuclear scientist who worked in a sensitive field is not an ordinary event. It points to the shaky human and personnel reliability in the Indian nuclear complex. Till his apparent suicide Mahalingam was working on a sensitive and important post at the Kaiga Atomic Power Plant. Kaiga Atomic Power Plant is not a civilian nuclear plant and is not under IAEA safeguards. It is part of India’s nuclear weapons complex and is designed for plutonium production for nuclear weapons. Mahalingam had a quarter-century experience of working on nuclear reactors. He was by no means a junior officer as wrongly claimed by some Indian newspapers. Interestingly, he had past record of absence without permission. After returning from his worrisome absence, ten years ago, he claimed to have gone in search of spiritual solace. It was the responsibility of the Indian nuclear security apparatus to verify his claims and keep an eye on his activities. Had any action been taken, this mishap would not have happened. It seems that no thought is given to maintaining personality profiles of scientists working in the sensitive areas of the nuclear programme in India. Nuclear weapons possessor states have designed Personnel Reliability Programs (PRP) to ensure that only the most trustful, reliable and dependable individuals exhibiting excellent conduct and responsible behaviour are assigned sensitive jobs. PRP is a measure to prevent proliferation and minimise the threat of accidents due to deviant behaviour and potentially dangerous activities. To top the recklessness shown by those responsible for ensuring security of India’s nuclear complex Mahalingam was given the sensitive task of training young scientists. Until his disappearance he was working in the Simulator Training Division of the Kaiga Atomic Power Plant. A simulator is a precise replica of the control room of a nuclear power plant and the personnel working in that particular area are carefully chosen. The simulator control room mimics the situations and events taking place in the operational control room of nuclear reactor. Scientists and engineers are trained on simulators before they assume their duties on the nuclear plant. Personnel in the control room are highly experienced and have inside knowledge of the all the operations taking place in the nuclear reactor. A slight mistake or a small error of judgement on their part can create havoc. These individuals are responsible for the safe operation of the nuclear reactor and they have to be vigilant enough to deal with any emergency that might arise at any point in time.Apart from the current debacle, Indian nuclear programme has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. This is not the first case of mysterious disappearance and death of an employee of India’s strategic programme. A few weeks back another employee Ravi Mule of the same Kaiga Atomic Power Plant was murdered and his dead body was found in jungle in Kaiga township. Dr Anil Kumar Tiwari, the Director of Uttaranchal Space Application Centre, was assassinated on November 11, 2006. Both cases remain unsolved to date. Also, many cases of uranium thefts and smuggling from Indian nuclear facilities have been reported in the past several years. Indian scientists have been found involved in proliferation activities and have provided crucial know-how to Iran and Iraq. The US had imposed sanctions on two former chiefs Dr YSR. Prasad and Dr C Surendar of Nuclear Power Corporation of India in 2004. The United States, which has cut a nuclear deal with India, should stress upon India to clean up its act and put in place stringent safety and security measures as well as develop a reliable PRP. India claims to be a responsible nuclear power but that responsibility should be evident in its practices as well.

Haleema Saadia is a research fellow at SASSI, Islamabad. She can be reached at saadia.haleema@gmail.com