NEW DELHI: A nuclear safety review has
concluded that Indian nuclear plants will be able to withstand "extreme
natural events" like tsunamis, cyclones, floods and dam breaks.
The government informed Parliament that after
the Fukushima disaster in Japan, Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited
(NPCIL) had set up six taskforces to review safety features in Indian nuclear
plants.
"These taskforces have revisited the safety of all nuclear power
plants and found that Indian nuclear power reactors have sufficient margins and
features in the design to withstand high intensity earthquakes and
tsunami," the government said.
The taskforces also made some
recommendations. Among the recommendations were that reactors will shut down
automatically on sensing seismic activity and additional sources of power will
be set up, including hook-ups through external sources of power like diesel
generators. To factor in a longer duration power cut, the batteries will be
augmented.
The government is focusing more on keeping
the power going in reactors. In Fukushima, loss of the on-site emergency power
systems prevented the cooling of the fuel rods. This led to overheating,
resulting in hydrogen production and explosion due to a hydrogen fire. These
events led to release of radioactivity in Fukushima Daiichi.
Nuclear plants at Tarapur and Madras atomic
power stations will be given additional shore protection measures. Emergency
operating procedures are being reviewed and training of personnel increased,
the government said.
"Safety is a moving target and its upgradation is an
ongoing exercise. The features, systems and procedures are periodically
reviewed in the context of operational feedback and continuously evolving
safety standards," the government said.
However, India will not review its commitment
to nuclear energy, the government clarified.
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