The proposed site for Nuclear Power Station is just abutting the Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve. A small part of sanctuary land actually falls within the 2 kms radius of the site of Nuclear Power Station. The recent Environmental Guidelines stipulates that a Nuclear Power Station should be located beyond 25 kms from the boundary of a protected area. In view of this, the State Government of Andhra Pradesh suggested the shifting of boundary of Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Sanctuary by a distance of 25 km from the boundary of Nuclear Power Station on the North-East end and suggested an addition of equivalent area in the South-West end of the Sanctuary near Achampet (Mahaboobnagar District).

This request of the Government of Andhra Pradesh is to be acceded by the MOE&F for establishing the Nuclear Power Station at Nagarjunasagar.

A Technical Committee constituted by the Government of India (in April 1990) visited the Nagarjunasagar Site in September 1990 and desired certain information to be furnished on various points. The same were furnished to them and the Technical Committee submitted a report to Government of India.

To review the report submitted by the Technical Committee, a Site Selection Committee headed by Shri S.L. Kati, Managing Director, Nuclear Power Corporation was constituted by Government of India in October, 1991. The Committee along with its Chairman and Members, visited the Nagarjunasagar Site in April, 1992.

A meeting was convened by the Principal Secretary, Energy & Forests Department with the officials of APSEB and Forest Department on 15.9.94 and discussed the proposal of realignment of the boundaries of the Tiger Reserve by deletion of area under the proposed Nuclear Power Station site at Nagarjunasagar. The Principal Secretary, Energy and Forest Department advised the APSEB to obtain the landuse cover maps and the satellite pictures of the sanctuary area proposed for deletion and also of the area proposed for inclusion on the South-West end from Andhra Pradesh State from the Remote Sensing Application Centre.

The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Andhra Pradesh opined that the alternative area proposed as substitute in Achampet Division is totally a different habitat and is nearer to that of the habitat found near Hannanur and the setting up of a Nuclear Power Station near Nagarjunasagar would be detrimental to different live forms existing there. In view of the circumstances explained above, it became impossible to consider the deletion in the existing area of the sanctuary.

The Site Selection Committee requested Government of Andhra Pradesh/APSEB to expedite the issue of getting environmental clearance from the MoE&F, Government of India.

Subsequently, the Government of Andhra Pradesh in the meeting held on 4.4.95 in the Chambers of Secretary, Forests along with officials of Forest Department and APSEB regarding the issue of obtaining the Environmental Clearance from MoE&F decided to entrust the study of impacts of the power project to the Wild Life Institute of India (WII), Dehradun, at the cost of the APSEB.