Need to regulate nuclear sector: Ansari

“Our experience in regulation of a hitherto closed sector thrown open to private corporate and foreign investment has been a mixed one,” he said.

He stressed the importance for developing skilled manpower and ensuring proper knowledge management within the country in the nuclear sector,saying that nuclear education and training have been going through a decline.

If no action is taken,the nuclear sector risks “shortage of qualified manpower to ensure the appropriate regulation and operation of existing nuclear facilities as well as the construction of new ones”,he said.

While India can import nuclear fuel and technology,human resources would have to be developed and equipped within the country,he said.

Since India does not have many academic or professional institutions to train scientists and technologists for the nuclear industry,Ansari said it is for BARC to take up the challenge and deliver.

“The experience garnered over five decades must be adapted to training and making available nuclear scientists and technologists,so that the BARC Training School emerges as a world-renowned human resource development institution in nuclear science and technology,” he added.

This year,BARC has seen a marked increase in the number of applications for its training programmes.

The number is up nearly 50 per cent from last year,said Dr R K Puri,head,Human Resource Development Division,BARC. There have been 29,458 applications of which 438 were selected.