NEW DELHI: India is one of the few countries in the world I have achieved comprehensive capability in the entire nuclear fuel cycle, the Rajya Sabha was told last week.
Starting from prospecting and mining of nuclear fuel and clad fabrication, country’s engineers and scientists have achieved success in the design, construction and operation of nuclear reactors, besides nuclear fuel reprocessing and waste management, the Minister of State in the PMO’s office, Bhuvanesh Chaturvedi, told Ms. aroj Kharpardeinawritten questions Over the years, the country has also developed self-reliance in heavy water technology, reactor control systems, radiation monitoring and radiation safety equipment, as well as in reactor repair and maintenance technology. A variety of radioisotopes is produced indigenously in country’s research and power reactors and is widely used in agriculture, industry and medicine the minister said.
In agriculture, the Bhabha Atomic Research Center has produced improved mutants of several crop plants.
Radio isotopes have helped in the study of fertilizer uptake and economizing in the use of expensive fertilizers, he said.
(Chaturvedi said that food irradiation technology, which is internationally, accepted, has been promoted.
In industry, Gamma ray radiography has been used extensively for locating flaws in industrial pressure vessels, process pipes and other critical components, he said.
Nucleonic gauges have been used for the control of liquid levels in closed containers and for the measurement of the thickness of pipes, foils and sheet materials.
Radioisotopes have been effectively used in locating minutes leaks in underground gas pipelines without any need for excavation, Seepage in dams and the silt movement at harbor sites have been studied using radioisotopes, the minister said.
In medicine, radioisotopes are being used for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes in 300 medical institutions and 80 hospitals in India.
Article extracted from this publication >> June 9, 1995
