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Young World
Ensuring power for all
DR. T. V. PADMA
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In India, the need for power is growing at a phenomenal rate.
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Despite the possible benefits of nuclear power, there are potential drawbacks.
Photo: AFP
A nuclear power plant:How advisable is it?
One modern index of a nation’s wealth is its industrial production. Industrial production depends on the generation of energy that can be used for industrial purposes. Since 1881, electrical energy has been used for industrial purposes. Electrical energy is usually generated by mechanical means from one of several sources. Electrical energy is often generated using hydro power (causing water that falls from a great
height to turn a turbine that in turn then generates electricity). In India, the earliest hydro-power project was set up in Darjeeling in 1898. It was followed by others, such as the one at Shivasamudram which was set up in 1902. Another source of energy, one that is currently quite controversial from scientific and political standpoints, is nuclear energy.
Alternatives
In India, power generation is by and large a Government undertaking. The need for power in our country is growing at a phenomenal rate. There has been a tremendous increase in the generation of power, but it has not kept pace with the demand. Our generation and consumption needs have increased 64 per cent in the past decade and the projected rate of increase is eight per cent to 10 per cent annually.
Severe power shortages persist throughout India. In many states more than 10 per cent of the villages do not have electricity. The Government wants to provide power for all by 2012, and our rapidly growing economy needs dependable and reliable power supply.
Domestic fossil fuels (thermal sources) are limited in their supply. In addition, these sources contribute to pollution, including increased carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere that could result in global warming. Nuclear power is one viable alternative that does not contribute directly to global climate change.
India ranks ninth in terms of nuclear capacity and has eight nuclear reactors under construction. India recognised the need for nuclear energy very early. Homi Bhabha was the father of the Indian nuclear programme and the International Atomic Energy Association was his brainchild.
In order to develop nuclear energy, two important raw materials are needed: uranium, and, to a lesser extent, thorium. India has 24 per cent of the world’s known and available thorium. Indian scientists are conducting significant research in the use of thorium for energy generation and they have already designed a full fledged thorium-based nuclear reactor.
However, India’s uranium reserves are meagre. In this context, the U.S.-India Nuclear deal is important. The deal could ensure the availability of uranium, provide access to the latest and most efficient technology, and ensure supply of equipment translating into a much needed increase in the quantum of power generation. The government hopes that this will further spur economic growth.
Despite the many possible benefits of the deal, there are also many potential drawbacks from a scientific standpoint. The main concern is the advisability of building nuclear reactors. This is due to the risk of accident associated with nuclear plants, the Chernobyl disaster being a notable example. Another incredibly important problem is that posed by the disposal of radio-active waste (which is generated by nuclear power plants). Furthermore, the cost of dismantling a nuclear reactor is tremendous.
Many countries in Europe (such as Germany, Spain, Sweden and the Netherlands) are opposed to the use of nuclear energy. Belgium, which has been using nuclear energy for the past 40 years, is now phasing it out.
Nuclear energy may be a great help to India’s economy for a few decades but the potential benefits should be weighed against the possible risks resulting from accidents and the potential exposure of current and future generations to radioactive waste.
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Other energy sources
There are some sources of energy that we will never run out of, because the earth has a virtually endless supply of them. Examples of these renewable sources are wind, waves and solar energy. Many of these sources are also non-polluting sources of energy, and they do not harm the environment — they are clean.
Coal, oil and gas are thermal sources of energy. Coal, oil and gas reserves of the world are limited and so we cannot depend on them forever – one day, they will be totally exhausted. Thus thermal sources of energy are considered non-renewable sources of energy.
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