DAE moots dedicated information centres

According to the proposal,centres will be set up across the country. “The centres will give information to those who want to visit our nuclear plants or acquaint themselves with us,” Sinha said.

The location of these centres are yet to be finalised but they could be close to nuclear establishments or institutions. “The total cost of the entire project is estimated to be less than Rs 100 crore. We propose to cover the metro cities,places where our plants are located or proposed and cities close to plant sites. They will also give updates to people about the radiation levels of that particular state/region and the radiation levels of any unit located in that state,” DAE public awareness division head S K Malhotra said.

Atomic Energy Commission chairman Srikumar Banerjee had also,during the founder’s day celebrations at BARC,stressed that outreach programmes should be increased manifold so that a “greater appreciation comes from the neighbourhood” of plant sites. “The emphasis in the XII Plan proposals has been outreach programmes to enhance public acceptance and strengthening of linkages with universities and national laboratories,pursuit of multiple reactor technologies,safety upgrades to address external events and applications of nuclear technologies for societal benefits,” he said.

Meanwhile,Sinha said after detailed assessment and analysis,it could now be confirmed that the Fukushima event “has not caused any noticeable impact” on India. Further,an extensive exercise was carried out to assess the robustness of the advanced heavy water reactor (AHWR) design against any foreseeable accident scenarios.