Mumbai: A French delegation led by France foreign secretary Christian Masse met chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday and assured him of starting work on the Jaitapur nuclear project by 2018.

Mr Fadnavis has asked Mr Masse to start the procedure of giving employment to project-affected people as early as possible. The chief minister said this during a meeting with senior French officials, including French Ambassador in India Alexander Ziegler, working on the nuclear project.

The delegation has given an assurance that work on the ground will begin by 2018. However, locals against the project have rejected the job proposal and demanded that the scheme be cancelled.

Anti-nuclear power activists from Jaitapur have called this the “bulldozing tendency of the government” and threatened to intensify their agitation if project moves ahead.

Mr. Fadnavis told the officials that project-affected people remain skeptical about the project.

“We need to communicate with them to make them aware about the nuclear power project. Also, we need to tell them about the safety measures. We must ensure their participation,” he said. The chief minister also asked the French delegation to issue a timetable of the project.

“We should see that project-affected people get jobs as early as possible. We should accommodate their business in this project. For this, the company can begin skill development programmes in the area.”

Mr. Masse assured that demands made by the State Government would be fulfilled.

 “By 2018, we will start the actual work of project building. It will be a 10,000 MW project. By 2025, the first phase of this project will be completed.” But anti-nuclear activists remain unconvinced.

Satyajit Chavan, of the Anti-Jaitapur Project Movement, said, “The government trying to woo locals by talking about jobs and other things. But our opposition remains firm. The government must respect the opinions of the locals.”