Atomic Energy The principal aim of India's nuclear energy programme is the development and utilisation of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes such as power generation, applications in agriculture, medicine, industry, research and other areas. India, is today, globally acknowledged as one of the countries most advanced in nuclear technology. The country is self-reliant and excels in the expertise covering the complete nuclear cycle - from exploration and mining to power generation and waste management. The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), while performing a key role in the scientific and technological scenario of the country, has also been vital to the overall nation-building exercise. The Department has fostered the nuclear technology in the country to a perfect state of self - reliance fulfilling the aims of the planners, marked by overall balanced developments and growth in all the spheres of its activities. The strategy adopted has placed India in an advantageous position to formulate its own energy policy with confidence, matching its energy needs with its natural resources, especially in the context of several restrictive technology control regimes that are being adopted by the developed nations.
This strategy has accorded India the status of a 'Developed Nation' amongst the 'Developing Nations', a fact made clear by the election of India as the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in September 1994, where it occupies a position as permanent member since its inception.
Nuclear Power
The three stage programme, charted by Dr H. J. Bhabha, aimed at establishing nuclear power with resources comprises the following guidelines : a) First stage - use of natural uranium in pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWR) and production of power and plutonium; b) Second stage - use of plutonium produced in fast breeder reactors (FBR) and production of additional plutonium/u-233 and power; and c) Third stage - use of thorium u-233 in an advanced fuel cycle and reactor system (under development).Safety and Environment Concern
Nuclear Power Corporation (NPC) has gained an operating experience of around 100 reactor years. The operation of the nuclear power stations is marked by a good record of safety and environmental protection. Our safety standards are in keeping with those recommended by the IAEA and the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP). A national network of environmental radiation monitoring stations is being set up which will help in detecting unusual radiation releases as a part of a global environmental radiation monitoring network. Five such stations at Bombay, Tarapur, Kalpakkam, Calcutta and Indore are operational at present.A real time environmental dose logging system has been developed in the vicinity of the nuclear power plant. As a matter of caution off-site emergency preparedness plans are made for each plant and periodic exercises are carried out.
Research and Development
Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), the premier research centre of Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), has been working closely with NPC in its rapid indigenisation tasks; carries out research in areas of reactor engineering, reactor physics, nuclear chemistry, water chemistry, computer technology etc. The research reactors at Trombay, especially the indigenously built Dhruva have given the necessary infrastructural base for advances in nuclear sciences and technology.The other important multi-disciplinary R&D Centre, Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research is dedicated to fast reactor technology and associated fuel cycle, material sciences, fuel reprocessing and sodium technology. The Centre is also engaged in basic research relating to material science, radiochemistry, and applied research in the sphere of non-destructive technology, advanced instrumentation and materials.
Indigenous Technology
Progressive indigenisation has been achieved from Rajasthan Atomic Power Station to Kakrapar Atomic Power Station and also a high level of indigenisation exists in the related nuclear fuel cycle. DAE has also comprehensive capability to design, construct, operate and maintain related fuel cycle facilities, and many such facilities are operational all over the country.Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL), a public sector undertaking unit of DAE, process minerals to products which are not only of value to the Department, but also useful to other users in the country and outside. Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC), Hyderabad fabricates fuel and structural components for all operating power reactors, thorium blankets and structural components for FBTR. In the recent past, NFC developed special alloys for use in the space programme for the country - a major milestone in import substitution. NFC alongwith IRE has succeeded in producing pure zirconia crystal popularly known as American diamonds. Heavy Water Board designs, builds, operates its own heavy water plants which not only meet the country's requirements but have given us export capability.
BARC has developed comprehensive technology for industrial operations in fuel reprocessing and waste management. Reprocessing plants are operational in Trombay and Tarapur. Another plant will soon be commissioned at Kalpakkam. A comprehensive waste management technology for handling and safe disposal of all types of waste generated in the nuclear industries has been perfected by the Centre.
Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) was established to cater to the nuclear, radiological, instrumentation and control requirements for country's nuclear power programme. This was the first window of DAE for technology transfer in commercial and industrial electronics. At present 80 per cent of the products of this commercial venture serve core sectors of the nation like telecommunication, defence, space, steel, petrochemical and thermal power plants for their instrumentation and control computer application needs. ECIL has received the award for excellence in Strategic Electronics in 1994 from the Department of Electronics.
Spin-off Technologies
The R&D infrastructures through the research centres of excellence in various multi-disciplinary fields form the very basis of the Indian nuclear programme. The spin-offs arising from the programme contribute to the areas of national development which have social and economic importance, like agriculture, medicine, biotechnology, electronics and metallurgy. Many spin-off technologies generated by the multi-disciplinary research have been shared with other Government agencies, public sector companies and private institutions, such as, a super computer system ANUPAM and robotics device, a PC based Scanjet digital scanner Image Capturing, Processing and Display System, Chopper control system to be used in suburban trains which would lead to about 25 per cent of the total energy consumption to be saved.India is the only developing country, that has achieved self-reliance in the sphere of nuclear fuel cycle activities, amidst several international technology control regimes.
Nuclear Agriculture
In the sphere of agriculture, the Department of Atomic Energy caters to crop improvement programmes, fertilizer and pesticide related studies, food preservation by irradiation and water management, thus contributing immensely to the country's rural development programme. Among the improved crop varieties, two varieties of groundnut and black gram, very popular among farmers of Maharashtra, are being cultivated over large areas. A radiation-induced mutant of urid produced by BARC accounts for 90 per cent of the pulse's cultivation in entire Maharashtra.The banana plant, a product of tissue culture, development of photo-insensitive mutant of sesbania rostrata as a green manure are some of the outstanding achievements.
Water Management
The DAE has been involved in the process of water management all over the country on different aspects like artificial recharge of ground water system, the study of silt movement in ports, flow measurements in rivers and seepage identification in dams. The Department also supervises the studies conducted in the Cauvery delta revealing degree of inter-connection between upper and lower ground water zones lying under it thus providing input to feasibility studies on artificial research of ground water system, silt movement in the new Mangalore Port and Hooghly River estuary, flow measurements in river Tiesta in Sikkim and water seepage identification in Chaskaman Dam, Pune. Technological assistance was also lent to the Government of Maharashtra for detecting seepage in the lime stone bed of Borde reservoir and for leak detection in the dry docks of Visakapatnam.Health Care
The Board of Radiation and Isotope Technology formed to commercialise the use of isotopes supplies radiopharmaceuticals, labelled compounds and radioimmunoassay kits to over 400 medical institutions all over the country, to enable early diagnosis and treatment of diseases like cancer. The Radiation Medicine Centre of BARC and the Tata Memorial Centre have been performing a vital role in the research and technology involved in fighting cancer in the country through nuclear energy. The gamma sterilisation plants set up in various parts of the nation have provided an added impetus to the process of growth of better health care facilities.The Board has recently activated a sewage treatment programme by the development of the Sludge Hygienisation Research Irradiator (SHRI) at Baroda, Gujarat. This technology will help in eradication of micro-organisms that trigger off several infectious diseases. India is ranks as one amongst many developed nations, in the setting up of this experimental nuclear sewage treatment plant. The experience of the Baroda Municipal Corporation is being gathered for duplication of such applications within and outside the country in the sphere of preventive health care programme.
High Technology Development
Equipped with highly trained multi-disciplinary scientific manpower and impressive facilities, the high technologies generated in the various units of the DAE, besides raising nuclear technology to global standards, form part of national scientific and technology missions. Some of these missions are : a super computing system, Anupam, based on parallel processing techniques with a computing speed faster than any other indigenous system available in the country, demonstrated for several number crunching complex scientific applications; an Intelligent Braille Interpreter system; Antenna systems designed and fabricated for controlling the 45 metre dia parabolic dishes of the Giant Metrewave radio Telescope installed at Pune; Advanced remote handling and robotic devices and servo manipulators, for applications in industry; and various scintigraphic methods used in organ imaging in medical diagnosis and treatment.
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