Thorium, the element believed to be the key to Indian energy security among academicians is being looted from the Indian shores of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Did you know that??? It's all out there on the internet. This looting has been accused by the media as a scam performed by the nexus of politicians and smuggling mafias.
Is it simple ignorance on the part of bureaucrats or is it really a scam???
CAG report on the issue is still awaited.
Licenses were provided to certain individuals to mine and supply for the "Department of Atomic Energy". But, those individuals turned themselves into the mining barons, apparently out of the reach of the long hands of justice. The officials, privately admit that due to heavy mining by the companies floated by these individuals, it is almost impossible to keep check on illegalities involved. The department relies on the data provided by the companies itself. The same companies despite being accused, recently have been awarded certificates from Product Export Promotion Council of Central government.
India has the highest reserve of thorium which is found in the sands of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In other Countries, it is embedded in the rocks and requires elaborate processing to extract.While in India, it is found in the form of monazite, the raw material from which thorium can be extracted through simple quarrying and processing.
The government has failed to control the export of monazite and has allowed 2.1 million tonnes of it to be extracted. If the allegations are found to be true, it will be the largest scam ever in Indian history not only by the monetary perspective but also by the strategic perspective. The amount of monazite disappeared from Indian shores, as per the government data is believed to have equal amount of energy to meet 50 years of Indian requirements.
Currently countries like US and Japan are actively looking to increase their thorium production and the thorium based reactors. The thorium is important because:
1. Greater fuel efficiency
2. Less nuclear waste
3. Larger abundance
Also, weapons grade fissionable material is harder to retrieve safely and clandestinely from a thorium reactor.
While research is under way in many countries, only India is building utility-scale thorium fueled plants. India's Kakrapar-1 reactor is the first reactor that uses thorium rather than depleted uranium across the reactor core. The thorium reserves have thus, a significant strategic value for India.
Hence, India needs to safeguard its mineral resources and put an effective mechanism to check any such scams or ignorance related to its strategic interests.
Is it simple ignorance on the part of bureaucrats or is it really a scam???
CAG report on the issue is still awaited.
Licenses were provided to certain individuals to mine and supply for the "Department of Atomic Energy". But, those individuals turned themselves into the mining barons, apparently out of the reach of the long hands of justice. The officials, privately admit that due to heavy mining by the companies floated by these individuals, it is almost impossible to keep check on illegalities involved. The department relies on the data provided by the companies itself. The same companies despite being accused, recently have been awarded certificates from Product Export Promotion Council of Central government.
India has the highest reserve of thorium which is found in the sands of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In other Countries, it is embedded in the rocks and requires elaborate processing to extract.While in India, it is found in the form of monazite, the raw material from which thorium can be extracted through simple quarrying and processing.
The government has failed to control the export of monazite and has allowed 2.1 million tonnes of it to be extracted. If the allegations are found to be true, it will be the largest scam ever in Indian history not only by the monetary perspective but also by the strategic perspective. The amount of monazite disappeared from Indian shores, as per the government data is believed to have equal amount of energy to meet 50 years of Indian requirements.
Currently countries like US and Japan are actively looking to increase their thorium production and the thorium based reactors. The thorium is important because:
1. Greater fuel efficiency
2. Less nuclear waste
3. Larger abundance
Also, weapons grade fissionable material is harder to retrieve safely and clandestinely from a thorium reactor.
While research is under way in many countries, only India is building utility-scale thorium fueled plants. India's Kakrapar-1 reactor is the first reactor that uses thorium rather than depleted uranium across the reactor core. The thorium reserves have thus, a significant strategic value for India.
Hence, India needs to safeguard its mineral resources and put an effective mechanism to check any such scams or ignorance related to its strategic interests.
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