1. RAPS-5
  2. Kudankulam: 1000 MW mark
  3. Kudankulam nuke plant: SC rejects plea

RAPS-5

Q. Discuss the significance of RAPS-5 as a nuclear energy milestone in India. (100 words)

RAPS Rawatbhatta Atomic Power Station
Record Continuous Operation for 765 days. Proves that India can generate nuke power in safe and reliable manner.
Technology Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor ( Indigenous) by NAPCIL.
Fuel Natural Uranium
Cooling Heavy Water
Moderator Heavy Water
Supplies Power to Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and Uttrakhand.
Number of reactors
  • 6 constructed
  • 2 reactors under construction
  • Largest number of reactors in a single site.

Kudankulam: 1000 MW mark

Brief Profile of Kudankulam Plant
Technology Voda Voda Energo Reactor (VVER)= water cooled, water moderated energy reactor.
Supplier
  • Atomstroyexports, Russia supplied both uranium and the the VVER technology.
  • Atomstroyexport is a subsidiary of Russian PSU Rosatom.
Type light water reactor
Sub-Type Pressurized water reactor
software VISWAM
Fuel Uranium
Beneficiaries
  1. Tamil Nadu
  2. Karnataka
  3. Kerala
  4. Puducherry

NPCIL will sell electricity to them at Rs.3.50 per unit. All the unallocated electricity belongs to Union government.

 

Timeline of Nuclear reactors in India
1969 Tarapur, with US help.
2002 Kudankulam construction begins
2011 People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE) begins protests against Kudankulam project.
2013 Attained critical capacity. This is India’s 21st reactor.
2014, May
  • Protest completes 1000 days.
  • Supreme court rejects their plea to appoint another safety Committee for Kudankulam
2014, June
  • Tamilnadu becomes first state to have two operational nuke plants viz. Kudankulam and Kalpakkam.
  • Kudankulam becomes first nuclear plant to attain 1000MW capacity
  • Other desi nuke reactors have capacity of 700MW only.
  • Tata Mundra Thermal plant 800MW

 

States with highest nuclear energy (October 2013 data)
State rank Nuke power (MW)
  1. Tamilnadu
 1440
  1. Maharashtra
 1400
  1. Rajasthan
 1180
  1. Gujarat, Karnataka and Uttar Pradhesh
 each with 880

Reasons for delay in reaching 1000MW mark:

  1. So far India used Pressurized Heavy Water reactor technology. But Kudankulam uses Light water reactor technology. So NPCIL engineers had to buy coaching material to learn how to use new technology.
  2. After Fukushima incident, NPCIL had to build additional safety measures.
  3. Anti-Kudankulam protests, court cases.

Kudankulam nuke plant: SC rejects plea to appoint panel

In 2013

  • Anti-nuclear activist G. Sundarrajan filed petition in Supreme court, alleging that Atomic energy regulatory board (AERB) made haste in clearing the Kudankulam plant in Tamilnadu.
  • Supreme court permitted construction of Kudankulam plant, but gave strict guidelines for disaster management, environmental protection, nuclear leakage, regular inspection @3 months interval etc.

In 2014, May

  • G. Sudar Rajan again went to SC, demanding a committee under Ex-AERB chief A.Gopalakrishnan to supervise the plant.
  • But Supreme Court on Thursday rejected the plea to appoint any expert team- AERB, NPCIL sufficient. It is not necessary to appoint SITs and Committees everywhere.

Mock questions

Q. Consider following statements about Kudankulam project

  1. It uses Voda Voda Energo reactor.
  2. It runs on light water technology using Viswam software.
  3. This technology imported from Russia while Uranium imported from Canada

Correct statements are

  1. Only 1 and 2
  2. Only 2 and 3
  3. Only 1 and 3
  4. None of them

Q. Which of the following are beneficiary of electricity from Kudankulam project?

  1. Tamilnadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra
  2. Tamilnadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Telangana
  3. Tamilnadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra, Telangana
  4. Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Puducherry.

Q. Tamilnadu is the __

  1. First state in India to have operational nuclear powerplants in two places.
  2. state with highest generation of nuclear energy
  3. Both A and B
  4. Neither A nor B

interview Question: Why is Kudankulam nuclear plant unique than other nuclear plants in India?