Rapid development cannot come at the cost of safety. India needs to review the safety of its nuclear plants
The safety of nuclear plants across the world and the viability of nuclear energy have come into question in the wake of the nuclear disaster at the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan after the island nation was hit by a massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011. The radiation that emanated from the damaged reactors affected lives of several thousand individuals and safety of the civilians was compromised as all initial efforts to curtail the destruction failed. The mighty Japanese were left grappling with the fire at the nuclear plant. Add to this, the radiation cloud also moved across continents with the winds. Even food and water in Japan got contaminated. The government of India was forced to ban import of food items from Japan.
A question that stares us in the face is ‘Can we afford to risk the safety of citizens for the sake of energy?’
India is fast growing and with development the need for energy increases exponentially. Coal, petroleum and other natural resources are not renewable and there is a sense of urgency to develop means which can sustain our future energy needs. Nuclear energy seems an enviable option as even small amount of uranium has the potential to give us massive doses of energy. So the opinion seems to tilt in favour of nuclear energy.
But rapid development cannot come at the cost of safety. So wisdom says that a comprehensive review of the nuclear apparatus is needed.
India relies on indigenous Fast Breeder Reactors (FBRs) which can use the vast thorium reserves of the country. We all know India does not have quality uranium needed for the nuclear plants. However, the cause of concern is that FBRs are cooled by liquid sodium which is highly inflammable. So, is India ready to handle any crisis of the scale that the unfortunate Japan witnessed? Are nuclear power plants in our country tsunami and earthquake proof? The government and scientists must answer these questions and take suitable steps to ensure that energy needs of the country are met without any compromise with the safety of Indians.
The safety of nuclear plants across the world and the viability of nuclear energy have come into question in the wake of the nuclear disaster at the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan after the island nation was hit by a massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011. The radiation that emanated from the damaged reactors affected lives of several thousand individuals and safety of the civilians was compromised as all initial efforts to curtail the destruction failed. The mighty Japanese were left grappling with the fire at the nuclear plant. Add to this, the radiation cloud also moved across continents with the winds. Even food and water in Japan got contaminated. The government of India was forced to ban import of food items from Japan.
A question that stares us in the face is ‘Can we afford to risk the safety of citizens for the sake of energy?’
India is fast growing and with development the need for energy increases exponentially. Coal, petroleum and other natural resources are not renewable and there is a sense of urgency to develop means which can sustain our future energy needs. Nuclear energy seems an enviable option as even small amount of uranium has the potential to give us massive doses of energy. So the opinion seems to tilt in favour of nuclear energy.
But rapid development cannot come at the cost of safety. So wisdom says that a comprehensive review of the nuclear apparatus is needed.
India relies on indigenous Fast Breeder Reactors (FBRs) which can use the vast thorium reserves of the country. We all know India does not have quality uranium needed for the nuclear plants. However, the cause of concern is that FBRs are cooled by liquid sodium which is highly inflammable. So, is India ready to handle any crisis of the scale that the unfortunate Japan witnessed? Are nuclear power plants in our country tsunami and earthquake proof? The government and scientists must answer these questions and take suitable steps to ensure that energy needs of the country are met without any compromise with the safety of Indians.
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