India nuclear plant leaks!!

[SSGPA1]

Radiation exposure at Karnataka N-plant was deliberate: Kakodkar

MUMBAI/KAIGA: In a case of sabotage, Atomic Energy Commission chief Anil Kakodkar on Sunday said somebody "deliberately" put radioactive tritium in a water cooler at the Kaiga Nuclear Power Plant that exposed about 50 workers to increased level of radiation.

People involved will be punished under the Atomic Energy and other acts after investigation, he said. "Somebody deliberately put the tritiated water vials into a drinking water cooler. Therefore, we are investigating who is behind the malevolent act," he said in Mumbai.

About 45 to 50 employees working in the first maintenance unit of the Kaiga plant in Uttara Kannada district were treated at the plant hospital in Mallapur for increased level of tritium after they drank water from a cooler in the operating area on November 24, official sources said.

Tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen, is used in research, fusion reactors and neutron generators.

The plant's Station Director J P Gupta said from Kaiga that investigations have revealed that one of the water coolers was found to be contaminated and as a precautionary measure, body samples of all the persons working in the area were analysed and based on those results, a few were sent for medical consultation. All the persons are on their normal duty now, he said.

Kakodkar said, "The investigations are being carried out from two angles. First to ascertain as to who contaminated the water cooler with tritiated heavy water, and the second, from the radiation protection angle."

B Bhattacharjee, member, National Disaster Management Authority, said, "The cooler is supposed to be sealed and it was found to be sealed only.

But later on, the investigators found that through the drainage--the overflow line of the cooler, it seems some mischief monger inserted some tritiated water and contaminated the whole cooler. And people have consumed that (water)," he said, noting that "everything is normal. There is nothing serious."

Bhattacharjee said, "As soon as it was detected, they did a routine sampling. They gave some diuretics to all. Out of 55, 53 have been cleared."

Kakodkar said normally, it is a practice to test small amounts of tritiated heavy water for chemical parameters from different locations of the reactors.

The AEC chairman said the heavy water in all the pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWR) routinely goes for assessment of chemical parameters and during that process small samples are taken from different locations of the reactor to carry out analysis.

"It is a regular practice and while doing that the tritiated heavy water is carried in small vials to chemical labs within the premises to carry out analysis, and all these vials are sent back to the reactor when the analysis is over", he said.

Kakodkar also said, "We also check all the radiation workers with termoluminiscent dosimetry (TMD). So, we know the inventory and in the process of monitoring the dosimetry we found that some workers had tritiated water content in their body. They are being treated and are normal now," he said.

Kakodkar said, "No harm is expected as the regulatory limits are very stringent. There is plenty of margin between the permissible exposure level and exposure level when it causes same harm," he said.

A few years ago, a similar malevolent act was observed in Tarapur atomic power sub-station and the culprits were dismissed after investigations by the Department of Atomic Energy.

Uttara Kannada district superintendent of police, Raman Gupta, said that the police have offered their assistance in the investigation at the Kaiga plant.

"We are taking it seriously as public interest is involved. We are waiting for the nod of Kaiga authorities for investigation", Gupta said.

Authorities at Kaiga plant, a high security area, have told the police that an internal investigation is on. The contents of the water in the cooler are being investigated.

Uttara Kannada district commissioner Channappa Gouda said the affected employees are recovering. He said there was no radiation leakage in the plant. The experts' team is investigating on how the water in the cooler contained nuclear radiation, he said.

Radiation exposure at Karnataka N-plant was deliberate: Kakodkar - India - The Times of India

 

[Hulk]

India nuclear plant leak under investigation

Indian officials are investigating the leak of a radioactive substance into drinking water at an atomic power plant in the south of the country.

Fifty-five workers at the Kaiga plant needed medical treatment for excessive exposure to radiation after tritium contaminated a water cooler.

Officials said the leak might have been deliberate.

"Mischief is not ruled out. Investigations are on," plant director J P Gupta told Reuters news agency.

The 55 workers had returned to their duties at the plant, Mr Gupta added.

"This incident has in no way affected the public, safety, health and environment."

The highly protected Kaiga plant is on the west coast of India, 450km (280 miles) from Bangalore.

Tritium, also known as Hydrogen-3, is used in research, fusion reactors and neutron generators.

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Power workers drink radioactive water - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)


Power workers drink radioactive water

Posted November 29, 2009 21:20:00

Indian government officials say workers at a nuclear power plant in the country's south have been treated for poisoning after drinking water was deliberately spiked with radiation.

Routine tests showed 55 employees from the plant in Kaiga in the state of Karnataka had increased levels of the radioactive element tritium, which is used in nuclear reactors.

B Bhattacharjee, a member of the National Disaster Management Authority, said someone had inserted contaminated water into a water cooler, according to the Press Trust of India.

The employees had not suffered any ill effects and had returned to work, plant officials told AFP.

Atomic Energy Commission chairman Anil Kakodkar, speaking on the Headlines Today television network, blamed the sabotage on "an insider who has played mischief".

Mr Kakodkar said security was "foolproof" and there was no chance of an outsider gaining access to the station.

The Nuclear Power Corporation of India, which operates the country's civil nuclear facilities, said in a statement that preliminary enquiries revealed no radioactive leak or security breach.

"It is possibly an act of mischief," the statement said.

State ministers assured local residents that their health was not at risk.

The Kaiga plant was shut down in October for annual maintenance and is due to reopen shortly.


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Pakistan's Nukes are not safe...??

Thanks for twisting the title of thread. I hope you know the difference between power plant and Nuclear bomb. However I have always supported Pakistan on safety of its nuclear weapons. I thought a think tank member will do better.

 

[SSGPA1]

Where the hell is Mohamed ElBaradei & the IAEA now??

There needs to be a complete investigation by the IAEA and till then all Indian nuclear sites should be deemed dangerous. If India refuses to co-operate then there should be sanctions on India.

Indians and India are more occupied with Pakistan then the crap which goes on in India on a daily basis. The whole country is day dreaming, thinking that they have become a super power of some sorts

India is the super power of countries with nuclear accidents, sucide rate of farmers and high HIV rates!!

 

[Chanakyaa]

So, it means that Indian nukes are not safe.........some one can do any thing....
If its true then Its an alarming news. Indian nukes are not safe.

If u can understand A Nuclear Reactor has Noting to do with Nukes ?
Firstly its NOT an REACTOR OPERATIONAL Error.

Secondly even if i consider the worst scenario - Chernobyl did it by ANY simply ANY logic Imply That Russian Nukes were unsafe ??

Nuclear reactors are Managed by NPCIL, so its a Civilian Arena.
Indian Nukes are Managed by AEC i think which is a Highly Protected Area.

You must Know that The Indian PM's House has Only Air Defence Guns as Air Defence while the Nuke Facility has SAM Batteries Installed - The Ultimate Protection you may have at least Now in anywhere in the world.

 

[qsaark]

Where the hell is Mohamed ElBaradei & the IAEA now??

There needs to be a complete investigation by the IAEA and till then all Indian nuclear sites should be deemed dangerous. If India refuses to co-operate then there should be sanctions on India.

Indians and India are more occupied with Pakistan then the crap which goes on in India on a daily basis. The whole country is day dreaming, thinking that they have become a super power of some sorts

India is the super power of countries with nuclear accidents, sucide rate of farmers and high HIV rates!!

Nuclear power plants routinely and accidentally release tritium into the air and water as a gas (HT) or as water (HTO or 3HOH). No economically feasible technology exists to filter tritium from a nuclear power plant’s gaseous and liquid emissions to the environment. Therefore, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission does not require that it be filtered. Source: http://www.nirs.org/factsheets/routineradioactivereleases.htm

As it is already found out, it was an act of mischief and those found responsible will be sentences accordingly. There is no need for the involvement of IAEA. Sometimes there are matters that are purely scientific and have nothing to do with politics; such matters must be understood and handled accordingly.

 

[Chanakyaa]

In that case the safety of Indian nuclear plants indeed would be doubtful.

Jana, I have Visited The Narora Nuclear Plant. I have Visited Two NTPC Thermal Power Plants. I completed My Industrial Summer Training at Narora Plant - and I can Seriously Tell you the Security is awesome.

They say - Parinda Par Nai mar sakta..

Units of CISF ( Central Industrial Security Force ) Make an Extremely Thorough Checks before you enter be it ANY ONE , Even Employees.

Special Permissions are required , to enter the Reactor Building ,
We were NOT allowed any cell Phones any Bag inside.

This Case is of different Type - what if i hit some one to a wall .. cant i do that .. i can.. can any one avoid that .. no.

But This has nothing to with Reactor Safety.

 

[Abu Zolfiqar]

im very happy this happened....

just recently india's mr. singh was stating his concerns about Pakistan's (thus far flawless) nuclear safety record.


hilarious....

 

[SSGPA1]

Thanks for twisting the title of thread. I hope you know the difference between power plant and Nuclear bomb. However I have always supported Pakistan on safety of its nuclear weapons. I thought a think tank member will do better.

Thanks but that doesn't change the fact that your nuclear site was compromised. Thank God that this incident has not claimed any lives yet but imagine the risks associated with such incidents. We are simply highlighting those risks.

Funny thing is that the Indian media and the GoI has not blamed ISI yet It is a catch 22 situation, if they blame ISI then people will become more upset that ISI has access to India's nuclear sites too.
However, if they don't blame ISI then all wrath of the Indian public will fall upon the GoI.

 

[Imperial]

Nuclear power plants routinely and accidentally release tritium into the air and water as a gas (HT) or as water (HTO or 3HOH). No economically feasible technology exists to filter tritium from a nuclear power plant’s gaseous and liquid emissions to the environment. Therefore, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission does not require that it be filtered. Source: ROUTINE RADIOACTIVE RELEASES FROM NUCLEAR REACTORS - IT DOESN’T TAKE AN ACCIDENT - NIRS

As it is already found out, it was an act of mischief and those found responsible will be sentences accordingly. There is no need for the involvement of IAEA. Sometimes there are matters that are purely scientific and have nothing to do with politics; such matters must be understood and handled accordingly.

Thanks for the informative post . I think India still needs a little more attention on improving security at the nuclear reactors since we are going to be investing so heavily in nuclear power generation.

A secure and regularized nuclear reactor will go a long way into calming the nerves of locals and also be much more efficient.

There is no thing as too much too security.

 

[SSGPA1]

wow....india at fault......lets start an india bashing thread......i dont know the difference between a thermonuclear power plant and a nuclear bomb....but how does it matter...... i am a jerk who dosent bother to read beyond the news headline ....but hay ......india+nuclear+radiation= a perfect opportunity for me to kake an azz out of myself..... gues i got the thread starters frame of mind.....

Don't worry IAEA will soon teach you how to spell your last name properly, *** and not azz. At the same time IAEA will also tell you that they are concerned with such accidents.

Promoting Safety & Security
The IAEA works to protect people and the environment from harmful radiation exposure

The IAEA helps countries to upgrade nuclear safety and to prepare for and respond to emergencies. Work is keyed to international conventions, standards and, guidance. The main aim is to protect people and the environment from harmful radiation exposure.

The IAEA Department of Nuclear Safety and Security is the organizational hub for this pillar of the IAEA's work.

Two sets of activities target priorities:

In the safety area, they cover nuclear installations, radioactive sources, radioactive materials in transport, and radioactive waste. A core element is setting and promoting the application of international safety standards for the management and regulation of activities involving nuclear and radioactive materials.

In the security area, they cover nuclear and radioactive materials, as well as nuclear installations. The focus is on helping States prevent, detect, and respond to terrorist or other malicious acts - such as illegal possession, use, transfer, and trafficking - and to protect nuclear installations and transport against sabotage.
The IAEA's work has set the framework for cooperative efforts to build and strengthen an international safety and security regime. This framework includes advisory international standards, codes, and guides; binding international conventions; international peer reviews to evaluate national operations, capabilities, and infrastructures; and an international system of emergency preparedness and response.

Our Work: Safety

I hope that Indian govt will be contacted by the IAEA and if not then Pakistan should remind them to do so.

 

[EjazR]

Do you guys even know what heavy water is? You do know that you can't use heavy water as a firecracker let alone a nuclear bomb right?

 

[Abu Zolfiqar]

Pakistan would be happy to teach and work with indians to help them secure their nuclear facilities and prevent such untoward incidents

 

[qsaark]

Thanks for the informative post . I think India still needs a little more attention on improving security at the nuclear reactors since we are going to be investing so heavily in nuclear power generation.

A secure and regularized nuclear reactor will go a long way into calming the nerves of locals and also be much more efficient.

There is no thing as too much too security.

Incidents like these happen (though not always go public) in labs around the world including here in the USA. I know of an incident which happened at Harvard (yes Harvard) where some pissed-off student/staff contaminated the coffee maker with sodium azide, a poison. Poisoned Coffee Sent Harvard Researchers to Hospital - The Paper Trail (usnews.com). I am pretty sure something similar might have happened at the Kaiga plant. It probably has nothing to do with the security or whatever. At any rate, all professional institutions take even minor of incidents seriously and try to improve upon which I am sure will be done at Kaiga plant.

 

[abbasniazi]

Brothers, to be on the serious node,

its genuine concern for pakistan because we live very close to india and nuclear incident can affect us all irrespective of our national identity.

I think its a wakeup call for india to look into the areas of weakness in its programme and strengthen its system of internal control.

Brother Xinix, every system seems flawless unless untill it proves us wrong, and this is what happened in karnatka plant, and the statement of the indian offical clearly mentions the possibility of infiltration or mal-intention of someone from inside.

I want to make a request to the indian govt. not to put it on pakistan like always and try to figure out the enemy which want to capitalize on the enemity between the two countries and put our existance to threat. it might be someone who tried in samjhota express incident or gujrat riots etc.

 

[Hulk]

Thanks but that doesn't change the fact that your nuclear site was compromised. Thank God that this incident has not claimed any lives yet but imagine the risks associated with such incidents. We are simply highlighting those risks.

Funny thing is that the Indian media and the GoI has not blamed ISI yet It is a catch 22 situation, if they blame ISI then people will become more upset that ISI has access to India's nuclear sites too.
However, if they don't blame ISI then all wrath of the Indian public will fall upon the GoI.

Only the 10% of educated working class bothers by this news, if you do a poll you will know. Indians do not care as much as you think. So blaming on ISI will not happen for that reason. Also we do not believe everything that comes from our government if they do not supply proof. No one in India can convince Indian's that xyz pressure is stopping us from doing this or that. We are not gullible.