India needs 800 terawatt hour power annually if it wants to give reasonable quality of life to citizens, says Dr Anil Kakodkar

Syed Akbar
Hyderabad:  Eminent nuclear scientist Dr Anil Kakodkar has said only nuclear
energy would help India achieve the target of 5000 kWh per capita consumption
of electricity that would push the country on the human development index of 1.

“The per capita electricity consumption in the country at present is
10 times less than the target of 5000 kwh. We thus need to generate 10
times more power and this is possible only through nuclear and solar
energy. This is a huge task and we can achieve this by 2050. If we
reach the per capita of 5000 kWh, India will reach the human
development index closer to 1,” Dr Kakodkar said.

Addressing Dr M Channa Reddy Memorial Lecture here on January 5, Dr Kakodkar,
who earlier served as the chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, said
electricity constitutes a key input for enhancing quality of life in
society. “Indian population is expected to stabilize at around 1.6
billion. Thus to support a reasonable quality of life for our people,
we need 800 TWh (terawatt hour) annually. This would need a generation
capacity of around 1400 GWe (gigawatt electric). The additional
electricity that we would need to generate would be around 40 per cent
of current electricity generation worldwide,” he added.

He regretted that the per capita consumption of electricity in the
country is four times below the world average. “If the consumption in
developed nations is not taken into account, even then we would be two
times below the average of developing nations. China is marching
forward in meeting the energy needs through nuclear sources,” he
pointed out.

Projecting thorium and solar energy as the two major sources of
electricity to meet the future needs of the country, Dr Kakodkar said
adding that nuclear capacity augmentation is thus important both for
more electricity production and for enhanced capacity of conversion of
Thorium into nuclear fuel.

“Now that embargoes on Indian nuclear programme have eased out, we can
in fact speed up this process. This would help over come immediate
electricity shortages and also enable earlier deployment of thorium on
a largescale,” Dr Kakodkar observed.

Giving the example of the new Indian concept reactor AHWR 300-LEU, he
said nuclear power plants are safe and advanced nuclear technology has
helped in making them more secure from external and internal sabotage.

Nuclear Fuel Complex develops Incoloy-nickel tubes for pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR)

Syed Akbar
Hyderabad: The city-based Nuclear Fuel Complex has developed
Incoloy-nickel tubes with indigenous technology that will save at
least Rs 100 crore for every 700 mw of pressurised heavy water reactor
(PHWR).

India has thus far been importing incoloy-nickel tubes for its nuclear
power reactors. The tubes are used in steam generators of nuclear
power plants. This is a major breakthrough in Indian technology.

“Now India has achieved complete indigenisation of making steam
generators," Dr RN Jayraj, chief executive of NFC, pointed out.

The tubes will be sent to Larsen & Toubro (L&T), which will use them
in manufacturing totally indigenous steam generators, Jayaraj said in
Mumbai.

NFC has been gradually indigenising nuclear fuel technology. A few
years ago, it has developed for the first time Inconel-600 (nickel –
chromium – iron) alloy. It was extruded to 160 mm and 180 mm OD (outer
dimension) and 10 mm wall thickness. Also, 17-7 PH steel was extruded
for use in aerospace, nuclear and chemical industries.

The Nuclear Power Corporation of India has proposed as many as 16
units of 700 mw PHWR. To meet the requirement for the new plants, the
Nuclear Fuel Complex had signed an agreement with the L&T for
manufacture of Incoloy-nickel tubes.

India upgrades its nuclear reactors for tsunami, earthquake threats

Syed Akbar

Indian nuclear reactors will get a facility that automatically shuts them down in case of a devastating earthquake, as part of the ongoing upgrade of safety features that is being implemented after the nuclear disaster in Japan.
The other safety features include options for power sources for cooling the plant including harnessing solar power and use of nitrogen gas from liquid nitrogen tanks to control pressure. There will also be shore protection structures to protect nuclear power plants from tsunamis.

The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) is reinforcing safety features of nuclear reactors during natural calamities like earthquakes and tsunamis. The timeframe for the upgradation is about one year.

This follows the recommendations of the task forces set up by the NPCIL. Though the interim reports were submitted in April, the final reports are yet to be readied. The reports were sought after the damage to the Fukushima reactors inJapan after the devastating earthquake and tsunami in March.

The NPCIL says the Indian scenario is different from that of Japan. The location of tsunamigenic faults in the Indian context and seismic map shows that there will not be simultaneous occurrence of earthquake and tsunami.

“The safety features of nuclear power plants in the country are designed for earthquake with a return period of 10,000 years. The effects of earthquake, cyclone, storm surge and tsunami have been considered while designing the plants. But in view of the task force recommendations, safety measures are being further upgraded,” said the NPCIL report on safety.

Officials have designed computer simulations to measure the height of sea waves if an earthquake of 9 magnitude strikes at the Makran or Sumatra faults. If an earthquake hits Makran, it may create a tsunami on the west coast. If it occurs in the Sumatra region — like the one in December 2006 —the east coast is vulnerable.

The nuclear power plants located on the coast are linked to the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services in Hyderabad for prompt tsunami alerts.

For instance, the Madras Atomic Power Plant located on the east coast has a tsunami alert system. Even if an earthquake of 9.2 magnitude in the Sumatra region triggers a tsunami, it will take at least three hours to reach the nuclear plant. With the Incois setting off an alert within a few seconds, officials will have sufficient time to attend to the emergency.

Tummalapalle in Cuddapah Basin: Uranium resources in India: Andhra Pradesh to contribute 25 per cent of India's uranium needs

Syed Akbar
Hyderabad, May 29: With exploration in new areas indicating the presence of uranium resources, Andhra Pradesh is poised to become a major uranium hub, contributing almost 25 per cent of nuclear fuel for
India's future nuclear energy needs.
Tummalapalle and adjoining areas in Cuddapah Super basin may well emerge as one of the major uranium provinces in the world as almost a dozen new places with vast uranium resources have been identified
there, according to a former senior official of the city-based Atomic Minerals Directorate.
Of the six priority areas identified in the country for uranium exploration, three fall within the State. They are Tummalapalle in Cuddapah Super basin, Srisailam sub-basin and Bhima basin. Ranga Reddy and Mahbubnagar districts fall under Bhima basin which extends to over 5,200 sq km. If uranium resources found in  new areas are to be included, Andhra Pradesh will account for almost 25 per cent of total
uranium resources in the country.
It is estimated that as much as five lakh tonnes of uranium resources is hidden in Cuddapah super basin. Uranium mineralisation in Vempalle extends over 160 km belt from Maddimadugu to Chelumpalli and this area may soon turn into a potential zone for uranium exploitation.
As many as 10 new blocks have been identified within a radius of 30 km around Tummalapalle. "Five to eight years from now, AMD will establish substantial resources of uranium, mainly in Cuddapah basin, which will
cater the requirements of our country's nuclear power programme," the official pointed out. A number of mines may be opened in Cuddapah-Vempalle belt in near future to produce uranium.
The AMD teams have thus far identified three types of uranium mineralisation in Cuddapah basin. Investigations in Srisailam and Palnadu sub-basins have resulted in establishing four low grade uranium deposits at Lambapur, Peddaguttu, Chitrial and Koppunuru. Further explorations are being planned in these areas.

Japan nuclear mishap: Just three labs accredited to test Japan food radiation in India

Syed Akbar
Hyderabad:  India has just three accredited laboratories to test radiation levels in food items and one of them is owned by the Central government.
These centres are located in Chennai, Mumbai and New Delhi and this makes it difficult for them to take up radiation tests in case of any untoward incident. There was only one such centre prior to the nuclear mishap in Japan on March 11. A week after the radiation leak, accreditation was given to two more laboratories taking the total number to three.
The infrastructure available in the country is hardly sufficient to deal with Japan-type mishaps. Since India is primarily an agriculture country, there's a need for regular tests for radiation levels. Any radiation leak will first impact the food crops.
"Unfortunately we do not have a transparent system in the country as far as nuclear energy is concerned. We do not know what quantity of food from Japan is being tested at these laboratories. We also do not know the outcome of such tests. The government has not come out with data on imported food stuff tested at these laboratories," said senior scientist K Babu Rao.
India imports processed seafood from Japan, besides pearls. Rice, however, is not imported as Indians do not like the Japanese variety, which is sticky. The need for more laboratories is felt after the three-month ban on imports from Japan was lifted a day after it was imposed. However, the food from Japan is to tested for radiation contamination before it is released into the market for public consumption.
Concerns for radiation contamination have grown after nuclear leakage into the sea. The Nuclear Power Corporation of India in its latest update on radiation contamination in Japan on Friday evening said radioactive iodine was detected in quantities 1.40 lakh times higher than the prescribed safety limit.
"Even the Food Safety Standards Authority of India, which is overseeing the safety of foods imported from Japan, in its advisory expressed concern that the lab testing standards in the country are not of adequate level. If such is the ground situation in the country, one can imagine the standards being followed in our laboratories. Radiation contaminated food will trigger mutations in the body. The presence of radio nuclei is more dangerous than the radiation itself," observed senior geneticist Dr MN Khaja.

Boost to India's nuclear energy programme: Uranium reserves found in Karimnagar district of Andhra Pradesh

2011

By Syed Akbar

Hyderabad, March 8: In a major thrust to nuclear power generation programme in the country, the city-based Atomic Minerals Directorate has discovered uranium reserves in Peddur and Kottur villages of Karimnagar district.

Uranium is present in these villages in the form of its compound, tri-uranium octoxide. Researchers of the AMD centres in Hyderabad and Shillong jointly carried out geological investigations coupled with reconnaissance radiometric survey over parts of Karimnagar Granulite Terrain (KGT), spread over an area of 4,000 sq km. India's ambitious nuclear energy programme aims at generating 20 giga watt nuclear power by 2020 and the discovery of new uranium resources will further boost the nuclear energy sector.

The AMD team comprising Anjan Som, M Sai Baba and others found several radioactive anomalies indicating the presence of uranium and thorium within granite formed during Archaean to early-Proterozoic era (3.8 to 2.5 billion years ago) at Peddur and Kottur villages. Analysis of the sediment showed high values of uranium. Thorium, however, was present in negligible quantities.

In Peddur village, the AMD team noticed the presence of as high as 1.96 per cent tri-uranium octoxide or U3O8. In the Kottur area, U3O8 was present up to 0.059 per cent. In both the places thorium was found in minute quantities.

The discovery of uranium, according to the researchers, has opened up the possibility of "finding uranium mineralisation in Archaean meta-sediments and thus provides a thrust for uranium exploration in similar geological environs in India".

Incidentally, earlier radiometric surveys in the area did not yield any results. A second survey, however, revealed the presence of uranium deposits.

Japan nuclear disaster: NPCIL chief Dr SK Jain says nuclear reactors to be imported are safe

Syed Akbar

Hyderabad, March 19: Nuclear Power Corporation of India chairman Dr SK Jain on Saturday said the nuclear reactors being imported are designed site-specific, meeting all local geological and environmental safety requirements.

"Though we are importing the reactors, they are built to the specifications given by us. They will suit the local conditions where they will be installed," Dr Jain said clarifying that NPCIL will reject them if they do not meet the specifications fixed by it.

India plans to import as many as 40 nuclear reactors from France and USA in the next 10 years. Doubts are being expressed that some of these reactors are being made for the first time and thus, their technology not tested anywhere in the world.

Dr Jain was in the city to take possession of equipment for prototype fast breeder reactor from ECIL chairman YS Mayya. He later told this correspondent that all the existing nuclear plants in the country had been designed to withstand terror attacks even by aeroplanes and missiles.

"We have an inbuilt and back-up mechanism to face any terror threat. Our nuclear plants are not only safe but also as clean as hospital. We have worked on computer simulations and have made enough safeguards to protect our reactors from terror attacks," he added.

According to Dr Jain, in case all power supplies are lost at a nuclear plant in the country, there's a clear gap of 49 hours time to restore the heat sink and cool the reactor. "Our plants are so designed as to trip within three seconds in case of earthquake or other natural calamity," he clarified.

At present NPCIL operates 20 nuclear power reactors with an installed capacity of 4780 mw. Of these reactors, two are boiled water reactors at

Tarapur, and others pressurised heavy water reactors. The safety of the BWR plants was reanalysed a few years ago. They have been renovated, upgraded and additional safety features back fitted to latest state-of-art safety standards.

Addressing mediapersons later in the afternoon, Dr Jain said the PHWRs, on the other hand, are of a different design than that of BWRs and have multiple, redundant and diverse shutdown systems as well as cooling water systems.

"Our plants have testified their safety towards the severe earthquakes of Gujarat in Bhuj on January 26, 2001 when the Kakrapar Atomic Power Station continued to operate safely, supplying much needed power to the region," Dr Jain pointed out.

He said even during the tsunami on December 26, 2004, Madras Atomic Power Station was safely shutdown without any radiological consequences.

"The event in Japan will be reviewed in detail in due course as the detailed information becomes available. Resulting out of such a review, any reinforcement as needed in Indian reactors will be implemented," Dr Jain said.

Japan nuclear incident: Common man in India does not have direct access to radiation counters or dosimters

2011

Syed Akbar

Hyderabad, March 18: The common man in the country has no direct access to radiation counters or dosimeters for independent evaluation of radiation exposure if any, from the nuclear power plants.

People living in the vicinity of uranium and thorium mining projects are exposed to varying levels of radiation dosages, but they cannot know the exact quantum of exposure in the absence of public access to radiation counters and dosimeters. Only government agencies particularly of the Department of Atomic Energy are permitted to possess equipment that measure the exposure of radiation to the general public.

"For some strange reason the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board has not taken note of it. There's no shortage of radiation counters and dosimeters. A tender publication in a newspaper will flood you with the equipment. But since there's restriction on their use by the general public, one has to believe what the DAE or the Barc says. If they say there's no radiation exposure, that's it," a senior nuclear physicist associated with AERB told this correspondent.

Radiation counters help one know the quantum of radiation a person is exposed to. Radiation dosimeters also perform a similar function. Only top hospitals with nuclear medicine departments registered with the DAE get licence to use these equipment.

"The government has always kept a veil of secrecy on the civil nuclear power programme. Barc and DAE have constantly been denying that there's no radiation exposure to their employees, leave alone the general public. Their argument is that the radiation exposure is far below the natural background radiation that hits the earth. But the truth will come out if at least NGOs are permitted to take up independent evaluation of people exposed to radiation risk," said Dr K Babu Rao, adviser to National Alliance of People's Movements.

The demand for access to general public of radiation counters and dosimeters gains significance as India plans to import as many as 21 nuclear reactors as part of its ambitious "energy parks" programme. Each energy park will have a cluster of reactors posing even greater threat to the people living around.

The proposed nuclear plant at Kovvada in Srikakulam district will singularly have a capacity of 6000 MWe. This is against the overall nuclear energy generation of about 4500 MWe in the country at present. This speaks of the gigantic size of the nuclear energy park at Kovvada, a densely populated area.

"One can image the danger the nuclear energy parks will pose because of the location of a number of reactors at one small place. Radiation counters will help people know whether they are safe from or at risk of nuclear radiation. People have a right to health and they should not be denied of the facility," said anti-nuke activist V Satyanarayana.

AERB finally wakes up to Japan nuclear disaster to say Indian cities are safe

By Syed Akbar

Hyderabad, March 18: The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, which is supposedly a regulating body of nuclear energy in the country, wakes up a week after the Fukushima nuclear mishap to say there's no radiological impact in India from the Japan incident.

Faced with strong criticism for not doing its best to serve as a nuclear watchdog, the AERB on Friday conducted radiation studies at 28 places across the country, including Hyderabad, where the Nuclear Fuel Complex is located. The NFC purifies natural uranium ore and makes it nuclear grade for use in power plants.

The Indian Environmental Radiation Monitoring Network set up by Bhabha Atomic Research Centre studied the radiation levels in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Manavalakurichi, Mumbai, Nagpur, New Delhi, Shillong and Visakhapatnam among others. The measurements were taken on Friday afternoon.

The data obtained on Friday was compared with the one observed during February 2011, before the Fukushima incident. The AERB claims that "there's no adverse impact to India from the radiation leak at Fukushima".

Considering the geographical location of India with respect to Fukushima, current status of releases and the prevailing wind direction towards the east (Pacific Ocean), no radiological impact from the radioactivity released in Japan is expected in India.

The average natural background radiation in Hyderabad during February 2011 was 147 nGy/hr (nanoGray per hour) as against 147 nGy/hr recorded on March 18. For Bengaluru the figure is 88 for both the months. In case of Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu, the figures are 114 and 107 respectively.

Japan nuclear disaster: Radiation compensation quite low in India

2011

Syed Akbar

Hyderabad, March 17: People hit by radiation in case of nuclear mishap in India may not get more than Rs 2.5 lakh each as monetary compensation, fear anti-nuke activists.

Given the high density of population in the country a mishap in any of the nuclear power plants will affect at least one lakh people. Since the monetary cap is fixed at Rs 1500 crore under civil nuclear damage liability, those hit by radiation will not get hefty compensation.

If the compensation of Rs 1500 crore is to be shared by one lakh people, an affected individual can expect just Rs 1.5 lakh. Even if the Central government hikes the compensation, say by another Rs 1000 crore, people hit by radiation will have to be content with Rs 2.5 lakh each. The compensation an individual gets will go down if the nuclear disaster is of a large magnitude affecting more than a lakh people, argues anti-nuke activist and senior scientist Dr K Babu Rao.

"If the nuclear mishap in Japan is any indication, people living within a radius of 20 km may be affected. A radius of 20 km translates to about 600 sq km. Given the high density of population in India, at least 12 lakh people live within the potential dangerous zone. The dangers nuclear power plants pose are relatively more in India than in any other country. The damage liability should be unlimited and if it is limited affected individuals will get peanuts, as in the case of Bhopal tragedy," he warned.

Even in a thinly populated nation like the US, a mishap in a nuclear power plant will trigger one lakh "early fatalities" (death from radiation within nine years of exposure) and 40,000 cancer deaths over a period of time. The maximum cost of accident for a nuclear plant in the US is fixed at 656.9 billion US dollars (Rs 3,00,000 crore). But the Indian government has fixed an overall monetary liability of just Rs 1500 crore, which is about 200 times less, Dr Babu Rao said.

Gopal Krishna, convener of Toxic Watch Alliance, New Delhi, said many countries including the USA have unlimited liability in case of nuclear mishap. But in India the liability is fixed and this will badly affect the over all compensation to be paid to the affected individuals and their families.

"British Petroleum, responsible for oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, has deposited Rs 9,000 crore pending final settlement on compensation. Nuclear mishap is larger than oil spill. Plant genome is affected. Both  humans and animals will be subjected to untold miseries. The initial compensation fixed was just Rs 500 crore but later it was increased to Rs 1500 crore. For a densely populated nation like India there should be no limited liability in case of nuclear disasters," Gopal Krishna said.

He feared that even this paltry compensation will not reach the affected people as nuclear plants are exempt to pay compensation in case of earthquakes or terror attacks. "The Centre agrees to pay compensation in such cases. This in other words means leaving the operators scot free," he added.

SP Uday Kumar, convener, National Alliance of Anti-Nuclear Movement, Thrissur, said the quantum of compensation cannot be fixed as the magnitude of loss due to nuclear radiation cannot be assessed. "We do not have a mechanism to study the magnitude of the loss. Some people suffer immediately, while others report radiation-related problems a few years later. The liability should be unlimited as not just one individual but an entire locality could be wiped out in a nuclear mishap," he said.

"Since India is in no way more capable of dealing with nuclear catastrophe than the Japanese, justification of nuclear power plants is just shallow. With corrupt and poor quality practices inherent in the system, it is dangerous to meddle with such high risk projects," pointed out B Ramakrishnam Raju of National Alliance of People's Movement.

Evolutionary Pressurised Reactors are novice to Indian nuclear scientists, say former official of Atomic Energy Regulatory Board

2011

Syed Akbar

Hyderabad, March 15: The Evolutionary Pressurised Reactors, which India plans to build at Jaitapur in Maharashtra, are a novice to Indian nuclear scientists and engineers and the potential hazards they pose are not known.

The Central government plans to import as many as 21 nuclear reactors in a bid to boost the nuclear power generation. But in the process it seems to have compromised on the safety aspects, as these reactors are totally new to the Indian scenario.

Dr A Gopalakrishnan, former chairman of Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, told this correspondent that "the Evolutionary Pressurised Reactors to be built in Jaitapur, having not been commissioned anywhere in the world, is a non-existent reactor, whose potential problems are totally unknown even to Areva, its developer, let alone India’s Nuclear Power Corporation".

He said the government is "scattering our energies and talent in getting imported reactors like the French EPRs in Jaitapur, of which neither Indians nor the French know much about."

Stating that Indian engineers and scientists are totally familiar with the details of indigenously developed pressurised heavy water reactors to deal with any major accident, Dr Gopalakrishnan said "for Indian engineering teams to react in a similar timely and effective manner against an accident in one of the planned imported reactors will be next to impossible for at least few decades to come."

He urged the Central government to place all actions related to the import of reactors on hold and proceed gradually forward with building just the PHWRs. "India has built 18 PHWRs on own. We have mastered the design through carefully learning from the mistakes of the past, and are currently moving on to build 700 MWe units of this type. We have three generations of Indian engineers, who are familiar with the PHWR. If we need more nuclear power, the safest route is to consolidate and expand on our PHWR experience, import natural uranium and build more PHWRs," he said.

Pointing out that a reactor has to be physically built and then only it can be tested, Dr Gopalakrishnan said the EPR is a totally untested reactor, even if Areva claims it has combined various best design features on paper in conceiving the reactor.

The reliability and safety of EPR will be extremely low and unknown until, through different stages of operation and testing over years, all indicated problems are rectified.

"The promoters (NPCIL and Areva) are totally silent about the serious problems which India, and especially the local community, has to face after operations start and the spent-fuel starts accumulating at site. The especially higher burn-up spent fuel from EPRs has its own unique hazards at the storage and transportation stages, unlike in the case of current LWRs, which use lower burn-ups," he observed.

Dr Gopalakrishnan suggested that a high-level national review commission on nuclear power should be appointed to review India’s nuclear power policies at the earliest. "The members of this commission must be people of high ethical standards with expertise in matters of nuclear power, safety and economics, and preferably non-officials of the government and not connected with business houses or federations," he pointed out.

Anti-nuke activists demand scrapping of proposed nuclear power plants

Syed Akbar

Hyderabad, March 14: Anti-nuke activists are back in action demanding scrapping of all the proposed nuclear power plants and uranium mining units in the State.

They allege that the USA wants to "test its untested technology" of pressurised water reactors at Kovvada village in Srikakulam district.

Senior scientist Dr K Babu Rao, who has been fighting against nuclear pollution in the country, argued that pressurised water reactors or light water reactors from the USA are of the same design as the reactors in Fukushima Daiichi, which faced the threat of meltdown.

"These reactors are the same design as those in Fukushima Daiichi, and are actually a newer version of Generation 4 reactors, which have not been used or tested anywhere in the world. Nobody can say either about the efficacy or the durability of these reactors. So, people of AP will be the experimental guinea pigs to “test” this “un proven” technology," he pointed out.

The anti-nuke activists are now armed with a Barc report obtained by RTI activist Chetan Kothari. The Barc report has admitted that as many as 1930 scientists and other staff of various nuclear units in the country had died mostly of cancers in the last 15 years.

These deaths include 197 cases of suicide. Barc leads the deaths with 680 cases, followed by Nuclear Power Corporation of India with 346, Nuclear Fuel Complex with 172 and Uranium Corporation of India Limited with 86. However, there's no medical evidence to link these deaths with exposure to radiation.

Saraswati Kavula, joint convener of the National Alliance of People's Movement, said even if the nuclear plants proposed in the State are of proven technology, there's no guarantee that they would withstand a tsunami or an earthquake.

"Can we guarantee that another tsunami will not hit our coast, or that another earthquake will not hit the proposed uranium mines in Nalgonda or the nuclear plants and uranium mines now in construction in Kadapa? When questions such as these are posed to the authorities, we get lame duck responses," she said.

The NAPA has urged people to take note of the nuke mishap in Japan and bring pressure on the Central and the State governments to stop their "mad schemes of mass murder in the name of development".

Social scientist Dr Chenna Basavaiah said "atoms for peace is a myth and nuclear power is neither clean nor safe". He said post Indo-US nuclear deal, authorities in the State and at the Centre had gone overboard in trying to convince people on the “need” for nuclear power plants and claiming that Indian track record with respect to nuclear industry is absolutely impeccable.

"During the Tsunami of 2004, Kalpakkam Nuclear Reactor was damaged and the sea water entered the plant and people too died of radiation impact. However, this information was suppressed as with all other incidents in the past," research fellow Dr K Satyalakshmi said.

Japan nuclear episode: Nuclear mining and power plants in India safe, says Barc scientist

2011

Syed Akbar

Hyderabad, March 13: Nuclear mining and power plants in the country are safe and the environmental radiation levels released by them are quite low and negligible.

According to Dr VD Puranik, head of the environmental assessment division of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, radiation exposures to the general public due to the operations of nuclear units like beach mineral separation, monazite processing, uranium mining and milling, and fuel fabrication "are not significant".

Dr Puranik has carried out extensive work on the radiological and environmental safety aspects of nuclear mining and power units in the country. His findings that "the environmental radiation levels are low and often close to the local background level" gain significance in the backdrop of apprehensions that nuclear power operations in the country are not safe. Radiological pollution and its impact on health has been the focus of discussion in the country after the nuclear mishap in Japan.

Analysis of data by Dr Puranik has revealed that even for those closely associated with these units, the average annual effective dose in the beach sand mining and processing of monazite and thorium are between 1 and 7 mSv (mean dose). The dose in any worker does not exceed the annual dose limit of 20 mSV prescribed by the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board. For uranium refining and fuel fabrication plants, like the Nuclear Fuel Complex in Hyderabad, the average annual effective dose are around 1 to 2 mSv.

The front end nuclear fuel cycle in India comprises mining and processing of beach mineral sands along the southern coasts of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Orissa, mining and processing of uranium ore in Singhbhum-East in Jharkhand, and refining and fuel fabrication in Hyderabad.

Magnesium di-uranate from uranium mill at Jaduguda is purified in uranium processing and fuel fabrication plant of NFC in the city, where nuclear grade uranium oxide is produced for use in fuel assemblies for power reactors.

Operation of the facilities, from mining of beach mineral sands and uranium ore and processing to purification of uranium to fabrication of fuels involves exposure of workers to varying levels of external and internal radiation. As against the upper annual dose limit of 20 mSv, a dose of 5 mSv has been observed at Jaduguda, 5.5 mSv at Bhatin, 4 mSv at Narawa, 1 mSv at NFC, and 5.5 mSv at Udyogamandal.

Dr Puranik, while analysing the average values of uranium and radium in ground water at locations more than 5 km from the tailings pond of these units, observed "there seems to be no movement of radio-nuclides from the tailings pond to the ground water in the vicinity.

In Hyderabad wells and bore wells up to 5 km from NFC are monitored on regular basis for conventional pollutants and radioactivity. Ambient air quality is also measured. The levels are found to be "within the limits" and there's no environmental impact on twin cities.

Nuclear forensic science to catch criminals, trace mastermind behind terror incidents

2011
By Syed Akbar
Visakhapatnam, Feb 24:  Hi-tech criminals and terrorists beware! Thanks to recent advancement in nuclear forensic science in India, law-enforcing agencies in the country can now easily catch terror and hi-tech criminal groups, even while tracing the real mastermind behind terror incidents.
According to Dr Rukmani Krishnamurthy, technical adviser, Institute of Forensic Science, Mumbai, recent research in nuclear forensic science at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre will not only help in tackling incidents of illicit trafficking, but also effectively meet the threat of nuclear terrorism.
“The neutron activation analysis method now increasingly being adopted in forensic sciences provides hints on the origin of the material, and thus on the perpetrator. Unlike conventional methods like truth serum and lie-detector tests, forensic results obtained through neutron activation analysis at Barc serve as evidence in a court of law. It is as concrete a proof in a court of law as any DNA fingerprinting analysis,” Dr Rukmani told this correspondent.
Dr Rukmani is one of the nuclear forensic science experts participating in the ongoing 10th biennial symposium on nuclear and radiochemistry (Nucar – 2011) at GITAM University here. She said nuclear forensic science had emerged as the ultimate solution to the grave problem of techno-crime detection in the country.
Using Neutron activation analysis methods, one can determine in case of gunshot residues whether a hole is really due to the passage of a bullet. Analysis of firearm discharge residue in the hands of a suspect shooter will help differentiate homicide from suicide, besides identifying the shooter. “We can also estimate the range of firing and differentiate entry and exit shot hole and match the bullet specimen with metal piece 
obtained from the scene of the crime,” Dr Rukmani pointed out.
Analysis of biological material will help confirm toxic metals in poisoning cases. Experts will also know whether a particular case was of slow or acute poisoning. The availability of high neutron flux reactor at Barc has made hi-tech crime detection quite easier.
According to her, the most important advantage of NAA technique apart from its unparallel sensitivity, specificity and accuracy, is the simultaneous multi element determination capability without destroying the sample in the process. “Thus NAA allows re-examination of exhibits, archival preservation and presentation of the evidence material in court of law, if necessary,” she said.
It will also help in obtaining clues on the origin and on the intended use of the material seized from terror groups or hi-tech criminals.
“Nuclear forensics has reached a high degree of maturity in the country and it is highly relevant in the areas of non-proliferation and of nuclear security. Criminals use the latest technology to commit hi-tech crimes. Crimes are no more localized. They are organised globally. Terrorist activity and the information technology related crimes are the latest trends in the crime scenario,” Dr Rukmani observed, elaborating how NAA 
technique will bust complicated crimes indulged in by international terror groups.
According to her, the application of micro analytical techniques enables investigators to study even individual particles of only a few micrometres in size. This will fix terror groups and hi-tech criminals from escaping the long arms of law.

Provenance study: Neutron activation analysis to pinpoint geographical origin of archaeological objects

2011
By Syed Akbar
Visakhapatnam, Feb 23: A city nuclear scientist has developed technology to pinpoint the geographical source of archaeological artefacts without damaging their structure.
“So far we have technology to tell the age of an archaeological finding. But now we can tell from which place a particular archaeological artefact has originated, without subjecting the material to destruction,” says senior nuclear physicist Dr N Lakshmana Das.
In conventional technology, archaeological artefacts are subjected to damage and destruction as it involves chemical studies. The new provenance study conducted by Dr Lakshmana Das in association with the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre does not involve any damage to the artefacts like historical potteries, idols, bricks, stones, coins and paints.
“Since they are of great historical and archaeological value, we cannot damage them. They are meant for preservation for posterity. We use instrumental neutron activation analysis to find out the source of the object. So far we have completed studies on 20 Buddhist historic sites and work is in place in another 20 sites covering Bavikonda, Thotlakonda and Pavaralakonda Buddhist locations,” Dr Lakshman Das, who is also the principal of GITAM deemed university.
The artefact, whose source of origin is to be studied, is kept in a nuclear reactor which studies its elementary composition including rare earth elements and gives the analysis quite accurately. “The technology is so accurate that there’s no scope for error. Even if the element is present as minutely as one in a billion parts, the instrumental neutron activation analysis pinpoints to the source material,” he said.
The variation of trace elements depends on the place and preparation and hence determination of concentration of trace elements of significance becomes more important. Group of elements used for provenance studies are alkali and alkaline elements, transition elements and rare earth elements.
As many as 140 Buddhist sites have been identified in Andhra Pradesh ranging in date from pre-Ashoka (3rd century BC) to Vishnukundin times (5th century CE). The sites extend from Dantapuram in the north to Nandaluru in the south and Kotilingala in the west to Bhattiprolu in the east of Andhra Pradesh. Buddhist monks traveled to Sri Lanka via Orissa and Andhra Pradesh and then spread to East Asia. The provenance studies will provide an insight whether the luggage carried by the monks were local in origin.