Vulnerability to Nuclear Accidents

The growth in the application of nuclear science and technology in the fields of power generation, medicine, industry, agriculture, research and defence has led to an increase in the risk of occurrence of Nuclear and Radiological emergencies. 

• There are nuclear accidents in India, but so far, there have been no nuclear disasters in India. India had so many accidents in its kitty, but they are not prominent as only economic loss is incurred but not the human loss. Some accidents caused heavier losses to the environment, too, in addition to economic losses.
• Incidents of such accidents are the 1987 Kalpakkam accident, 1989 Tarapur accident, 1992 Tarapur accident, 1993 Narora fire accident, 1995 RAPS leakage incident, 2010 Mayapuri incident, etc.

In India, the probability of a major accident at nuclear facilities leading to the release of large quantities of radioactivity into the environment is always ensured to be negligibly small. However, even in the event of a major release into the environment, the prompt and effective implementation of counter measures can reduce the radiological consequences for the public and the environment.