Nuclear power

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New Delhi

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Atomic Power Stations in India (view)
 Active plants
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Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

(courtesy: Sandesh)
Nuclear power is the fourth-largest source of electricity in India after thermal, hydro and
renewable sources of electricity.[1] As of 2010, India has 20 nuclear power plants in operation
generating 4,560 MW while 4 other are under construction and are expected to generate an
additional 2,720 MW.[2] India's nuclear power industry is undergoing rapid expansion with plans
to increase nuclear power output to 64,000 MW by 2032.[3] The country is involved in the
development of nuclear fusion reactors through its participation in the ITER project and is a
global leader in the development of thorium-based fast breeder reactors.

Use=
India’s domestic uranium reserves are small and the country is dependent on uranium imports to
fuel its nuclear power industry. Since early 1990s, Russia has been a major supplier of nuclear
fuel to India.[5] Due to dwindling domestic uranium reserves,[6] electricity generation from
nuclear power in India declined by 12.83% from 2006 to 2008.[7] Following a waiver from the
Nuclear Suppliers Group in September 2008 which allowed it to commence international nuclear
trade,[8] India has signed bilateral deals on civilian nuclear energy technology cooperation with
several other countries, including France,[9] the United States,[10] the United Kingdom,[11] and
Canada.[12] India has also uranium supply agreements with Russia,[13][14] Mongolia,[15] Kazakhstan,
[16]
Argentina[17] and Namibia.[18] An Indian private company won a uranium exploration contract
in Niger.[19]

India now envisages to increase the contribution of nuclear power to overall electricity
generation capacity from 4.2% to 9% within 25 years.[20] In 2010, India's installed nuclear power
generation capacity will increase to 6,000 MW.[21] As of 2009, India stands 9th in the world in
terms of number of operational nuclear power reactors and is constructing 9 more, including two
EPRs being constructed by France's Areva.[22] Indigenous atomic reactors include TAPS-3, and
-4, both of which are 540 MW reactors.[23] India's US$717 million fast breeder reactor project is
expected to be operational by 2010.

Use----

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

(courtesy: Sandesh)
As of 2005, nuclear power provided 6.3% of the world's energy and 15% of the world's
electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for 56.5% of nuclear generated
electricity.[2] In 2007, the IAEA reported there were 439 nuclear power reactors in operation in
the world,[3] operating in 31 countries.[4] As of December 2009, the world had 436 reactors.[5]
Since commercial nuclear energy began in the mid 1950s, 2008 was the first year that no new
nuclear power plant was connected to the grid, although two were connected in 2009.[5][6]

Annual generation of nuclear power has been on a slight downward trend since 2007, decreasing
1.8% in 2009 to 2558 TWh with nuclear power meeting 13–14% of the world's electricity
demand.[1] One factor in the nuclear power percentage decrease since 2007 has been the
prolonged shutdown of large reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant in Japan
following the Niigata-Chuetsu-Oki earthquake.[1]

Nuclear safety
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Nuclear safety covers the actions taken to prevent nuclear and radiation accidents or to limit
their consequences. This covers nuclear power plants as well as all other nuclear facilities, the
transportation of nuclear materials, and the use and storage of nuclear materials for medical,
power, industry, and military uses.

The nuclear power industry has improved the safety and performance of reactors, and has
proposed new (but generally untested) “inherently” safe reactor designs but there is no guarantee
that the reactors will be designed, built and operated correctly. Mistakes do occur and
catastrophic scenarios involving terrorist attacks are still conceivable.[1]

Nuclear weapon safety, as well as the safety of military research involving nuclear materials, is
generally handled by agencies different from those that oversee civilian safety, for various
reasons, including secrecy

An Overview of Nuclear Power Plants

Nuclear power plants generate electricity by using steam to make large, propeller-shaped blades
turn, spinning the shaft of the generator. Inside this huge structure, wire coils and magnetic fields
combine to create electricity.

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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Uranium is not burned during the process. Instead, heat is produced through
fission (splitting an atom). The fuel used is in the form of a pellet, which is
approximately half an inch long and the same diameter as a piece of
blackboard chalk.
Growth(only if necessary
India, being a non-signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, has been
subjected to a defacto nuclear embargo from members of the Nuclear
Suppliers Group (NSG) cartel. This has prevented India from obtaining
commercial nuclear fuel, nuclear power plant components and services from
the international market, thereby forcing India to develop its own fuel,
components and services for nuclear power generation. The NSG embargo has
had both negative and positive consequences for India's Nuclear Industry. On
one hand, the NSG regime has constrained India from freely importing nuclear
fuel at the volume and cost levels it would like to support the country's goals
of expanding its nuclear power generation capacity to at least 20,000 MW by
2020. Also, by precluding India from taking advantage of the economies of
scale and safety innovations of the global nuclear industry, the NSG regime has
driven up the capital and operating costs and damaged the achievable safety
potential of Indian nuclear power plants. On the other hand, the NSG embargo
has forced the Indian government and bureaucracy to support and actively
fund the development of Indian nuclear technologies and industrial capacities
in all key areas required to create and maintain a domestic nuclear industry.
This has resulted in the creation of a large pool of nuclear scientists, engineers
and technicians that have developed new and unique innovations in the areas
of Fast Breeder Reactors, Thermal Breeder Reactors, the Thorium fuel cycle,
nuclear fuel reprocessing and Tritium extraction & production. Ironically, had
the NSG sanctions not been in place, it would have been far more cost effective
for India to import foreign nuclear power plants and nuclear fuels than to
fund the development of Indian nuclear power generation technology,
building of India's own nuclear reactors, and the development of domestic
uranium mining, milling and refining capacity.

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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Safety Hazards in a Nuclear Power Plant: Keeping Risks to a Minimum

A nuclear power plant is a secure facility. These installations are continuously

patrolled by security personnel. Access to the plant is controlled, and all
visitors must sign in and out with a security guardIndia: Chhattisgarh
government to call probe into industrial accident
13 October 2009

'Balco mishap Chhattisgarh's biggest

industrial tragedy'
 Email Story  Write to the editor  Print Story

Raipur: The Chhattisgarh government today termed the Sep 23 Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (Balco) power plant chimney
crash, at Korba town, the biggest-ever industrial tragedy in the state's history.

"Balco mishap is the biggest ever industrial tragedy of state's history but it's incorrect to say the government had been silent to
neglect the industrial workers' interests, in fact, in 2009 itself a total of 57 inspections of Balco plant at Korba were carried out,"
labour minister Chandrasekhar Sahu said in reply to a Call Attention notice of leader of opposition Ravindra Choubey in the state
assembly.

Sahu rejected opposition charges that the government had maintained silence over Balco management's continuous violations to
various labour and industrial rules that risked the life of a large number of workers.

He informed the assembly that 39 workers were killed on the spot and one later succumbed to injuries at hospital while seven were
injured. A single-member judicial commission was formed in October under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952 to make a
comprehensive probe, he added.

Choubey said in his notice that about 70-80 workers were killed and hundreds were injured on Sep 23 at Korba, some 240 km from
state capital Raipur, when an under-construction chimney of the Balco power plant collapsed. It was all because sub-standard

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

(courtesy: Sandesh)
construction materials were used and the Balco management totally neglected labour and industrial rules, he

2009 Korba chimney collapse

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The chimney collapse occurred in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh

Coordinates: / 22.35°N 82.68°E The 2009 Korba chimney collapse

occurred in the
town of Korba in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh on 23 September 2009. It
was under construction by Gannon Dunkerley & Company Limited (GDCL) for
Shandong Electric Power Construction Corporation (Sepco), who themselves
were under contract for the Bharat Aluminium Co Ltd (BALCO). Construction
had reached 240 m (790 ft) when the chimney collapsed on top of more than
100 workers who had been taking shelter from a thunderstorm. At least 45
deaths were recordedIncident and rescue

Plans specify a 275-metre (902 ft) chimney for the construction of a thermal power plant by
Balco, which is owned by Vedanta Resources.[3][4][5] The incident happened during extreme
weather conditions involving lightning and torrential rainfall. Workers sought shelter from the
rain in a nearby store room,[3][6] and a lightning strike at approximately 16:00 brought the
chimney down on top of them.[7][6]<

A rescue attempt was initiated following the collapse. Ongoing rain obstructed efforts to retrieve
the trapped workers.[7] At least seven of the wounded were hospitalised.[4] An employee was

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

(courtesy: Sandesh)
allegedly thrashed to death as well; his corpse was located near the scene.[7] It was originally
thought he had fallen from the chimney, but wounds indicate he was attacked.[6]

[edit] Reaction

An investigation is ongoing to determine the cause of the collapse.[8][9][10] Balco initially did not
discussed the incident at length, stating only that "[t]here is an accident and some people are
injured";[10] claiming to be too busy with the rescue effort to make a longer statement.[7] The state
government believes that Balco had been "overlooking security aspects".[11] District
superintendent of police, Ratanlal Dangi, described it as "a massive accident".[8] Rs.100,000
(US$2084) in compensation will be granted to relatives of each of the dead.[11]

In November 2008, the project manager from GDCL was arrested, as well as three officials from
Vedanta Resources which manages Balco. Later the National Institute of Technology (NIT)
Raipur observed that the materials were of substandard quality and technically faulty in design.
NIT also concluded that there was improper water curing and that soil at the site was not up to
code. Additionally, supervision and monitoring was found to be negligent. On January 11, 2010,
as a result of these findings, three senior officials of Sepco, the Chinese company contracted to
build the chimney, were arrested and are being held without bail.[1]

g [edit] Reaction

An investigation is ongoing to determine the cause of the collapse.[8][9][10] Balco initially did not
discussed the incident at length, stating only that "[t]here is an accident and some people are
injured";[10] claiming to be too busy with the rescue effort to make a longer statement.[7] The state
government believes that Balco had been "overlooking security aspects".[11] District
superintendent of police, Ratanlal Dangi, described it as "a massive accident".[8] Rs.100,000
(US$2084) in compensation will be granted to relatives of each of the dead.[11]

In November 2008, the project manager from GDCL was arrested, as well as three officials from
Vedanta Resources which manages Balco. Later the National Institute of Technology (NIT)
Raipur observed that the materials were of substandard quality and technically faulty in design.
NIT also concluded that there was improper water curing and that soil at the site was not up to
code. Additionally, supervision and monitoring was found to be negligent. On January 11, 2010,
as a result of these findings, three senior officials of Sepco, the Chinese company contracted to
build the chimney, were arrested and are being held without bail.[1]

[edit] See also

Causes 4 industrial accident

Causes of industrial accidents can be broken down into two broad categories: unsafe conditions and unsafe acts. The

causes of industrial accidents that pertain to unsafe conditions can include insufficient workspace lighting, excessive

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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noise, slippery or unsafe flooring, extreme temperature exposure, inadequate protection when working with

machinery or hazardous materials, unstable structures, electrical problems, machine malfunction or failure, and more.

The causes of industrial accidents that involve unsafe acts can include actions or failures to act which result in injury.

This can be a result of employee negligence but employers, organizations, and product manufacturers can also be

liable for the causes of industrial accidents.

The causes of industrial accidents can occur in the environment around the workplace or within the work

environment. External causes of industrial accidents may include fires, chemical spills, toxic gas emission or

radiation. The causes of industrial accidents in these cases might include organizational errors, human factors,

abnormal operational conditions, natural forces, software or component failures, and outside interference. Internal

causes of industrial accidents can involve equipment or other work related tangibles, harmful materials, toxic

chemicals, and human error.

Measures taken-
A massive rescue and relief operation is in full swing and more than 20 heavy earth moving machines, cranes and other equipment
have been pressed into service. South Eastern Coal Fields Limited (SECL), National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and other
industrial units are also assisting in the operation.

“Twenty bodies have been recovered so far. Rescue operations are continuing,” police headquarters spokesman and Inspector
General of Police R K Vij said on Wednesday night.

“The debris of the mammoth chimney fell over an area of 300 metres crushing everything under it. It is feared that more than 50
people could be trapped inside. Hundreds of people are engaged in the rescue operation,” senior journalist Gendlal Shukla told The
Indian Express over telephone from the accident site. “Though searchlights have been installed, the rescue operation could take
about 24 hours. There is every possibility of the death toll going up,” he added.

There were reports that after the accident agitated workers manhandled staff of Gannon Dunkerley and Company Limited, which is
engaged in the construction of the chimney. There were unconfirmed reports of an employee being killed in the backlash.

Chief Minister Raman Singh has ordered a judicial inquiry into the incident and announced an ex gratia of Rs 1 lakh each to the
family of those killed. He said cases would be registered against the factory management and all others concerned while the state
government would bear all expenses for the treatment of the injured.

BALCO general manager (Corporate Communications) B K Shrivastav told The Indian Express that the injured were being treated
at the BALCO hospital where all doctors and paramedical staff had been pressed into service for emergency duty. He said the
management was taking all necessary steps to provide relief to the injured.

Official sources said the power plant was being constructed by the Chinese firm SEPCO, which had, in turn, entrusted the work of
the construction of two of its chimneys, having a height of 275 metres each, to Gannon Dunkerley and Company.

Reasons 4 accident-
Sterlite Industries Limited issued a statement after the accident stating "A probable reason for the incident
appears to be the excessive rains and lightning at Korba. The exact cause for this will however be ascertained
only after a detailed investigation is concluded".

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

(courtesy: Sandesh)
BALCO's General Manager at the site, B.K. Srivastava also stated after the incident, "A chimney of 275 metres
was being constructed, 100 metres were already completed. There was heavy rain and lightning when the
incident occurred". But while BALCO was claiming that the chimney fell down due to "natural reasons", both the
police and the experts said after the accident that they had never heard of a chimney collapsing because of
lightning. In their view the chimney could only have collapsed due to technical reasons, in particular, the use of
sub-standard metal rods in its construction. Moreover, it was also found that BALCO had not complied with
many of the required statutory clearances

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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relif and rescue work

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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 All industry chimeneys to be tested

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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Chimney's debris being removed
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rescurers in d site

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site
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Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site
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power plant

Industrial accident

chemical accident

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site
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nuclear power plant explosion

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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 nucle

ar s

neak attack

deadly nuclear accident

Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site

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Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site
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Crowd gathered at the Korba Chimeny accident site
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