{"id":154544,"date":"2025-02-06T19:21:34","date_gmt":"2025-02-06T13:51:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/?post_type=current-affairs&#038;p=154544"},"modified":"2025-02-06T19:21:34","modified_gmt":"2025-02-06T13:51:34","slug":"nuclear-energy-mission","status":"publish","type":"current-affairs","link":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/current-affairs\/nuclear-energy-mission","title":{"rendered":"Nuclear Energy Mission for Viksit Bharat"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The government in the<\/span><b> Budget speech of 2025-26<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has announced the <\/span><b>setting up of the Nuclear Energy Mission for<\/b> <b>Viksit Bhara<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t for research and development <\/span><b>of small modular reactors (SMRs).<\/b><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>About the Nuclear Energy Mission for Viksit Bharat<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Aim: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To <\/span><b>enhance domestic nuclear capabilities, promote private sector participation, and deploy advanced nuclear technologies.<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Funding: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Union Budget 2025-26 <\/span><b>has allocated \u20b920,000 crore for R&#038;D in Small Modular Reactors, <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">targeting at <\/span><b>least five indigenously designed operational SMRs by 2033.<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Target: India has targeted 100 GW nuclear power capacity by 2047<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Private Sector Entry: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The government plans to <\/span><b>amend the Atomic Energy Act of 1962 and the The Civil Liability for Nuclear Damages Act<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to facilitate the entry of the private sector in nuclear energy with the motive of,<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Setting up Bharat Small Reactors,<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Research &#038; development of Bharat Small Modular Reactor, and<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Research &#038; development of newer technologies for nuclear energy.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"vc_button\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pw.live\/batches\/upsc\/pw-only-ias?utm_source=seo+upsc+batch&#038;utm_medium=seo+upsc&#038;utm_campaign=seo&#038;utm_id=upsc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Enroll now for UPSC Online Classes<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>About Small Modular Reactors<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SMRs are<\/span><b> advanced nuclear reactors with the maximum power producing capacity of up to 300 MW(e) per unit.<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is about one-third of the generating capacity of <\/span><b>traditional nuclear power reactors (capacities of 500 MW of<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> electricity or more)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Modular Design: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The modular design of the reactors <\/span><b>means the systems and components are factory-assembled and transported as a unit <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to a location for installation instead of being constructed on-site<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Application Areas: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SMRs targets <\/span><b>varied outputs and different applications, such as electricity, hybrid energy systems, heating, water desalinisation<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and steam for industrial applications.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-154525 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/68-67a4b4471ac4a.webp\" alt=\"Nuclear Energy Mission\" width=\"502\" height=\"391\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/68-67a4b4471ac4a.webp 857w, https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/68-67a4b4471ac4a-300x234.webp 300w, https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/68-67a4b4471ac4a-768x599.webp 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 502px) 100vw, 502px\" \/><b>Operational Status:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> SMRs are <\/span><b>mostly still under the development stage<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with just a couple of experimental SMRs being operational right now.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul>\n<li><b>Example: Russia\u2019s Akademik Lomonosov<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (world\u2019s first floating nuclear power plant) is producing energy from two 35 MW(e) SMRs.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Development Status: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">More than<\/span><b> 80 different designs for SMRs are under development<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, across the world with countries like the United States, China, Russia and South Korea constructing such reactors.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>India is developing Bharat Small Modular Reactors (BSMRs) <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">as part of its energy transition strategy<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Advantages:\u00a0<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Design: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SMRs are <\/span><b>small and modular in design making them more affordable to build and install at <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">any given location. SMRs offer<\/span><b> savings in cost and construction time<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and they can be deployed incrementally to match increasing energy demand.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Inbuilt Safety Provisions: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SMRs are<\/span><b> passive systems that rely on physical phenomena <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(like, natural circulation, convection, gravity and self-pressurization) significantly <\/span><b>lowering the chance of unsafe release of radioactive waste i<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">n the environment in case of an accident.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Fuel Requirements: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SMRs may<\/span><b> require less frequent refuelling (every 3 to 7 years)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as compared to 1 to 2 years for conventional plants. Some SMRs are <\/span><b>designed to operate for up to 30 years without refuelling.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Energy Inclusivity:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> SMRs are <\/span><b>better suited for regions inaccessible to clean, reliable and affordable energy providing low-carbon power<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for industry and the population.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"3\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It can be<\/span><b> installed into an existing grid or remotely off-grid, a<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">s a function of its smaller electrical output.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>About India\u2019s Nuclear Power Generation Capacity<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Nuclear energy is the fifth-largest source of electricity in India.<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Present Status:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> India\u2019s Nuclear power generation capacity nearly doubled from 4,780 MW in 2014<\/span><b> to 8180 MW as of 2025, contributing about 3.11% <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(as of 2020-21) of the country\u2019s total electricity generation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-154526 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/69-67a4b44609cd8.webp\" alt=\"Nuclear Energy Mission\" width=\"502\" height=\"285\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/69-67a4b44609cd8.webp 611w, https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/69-67a4b44609cd8-300x170.webp 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 502px) 100vw, 502px\" \/><b>Projected:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Nuclear capacity is<\/span><b> projected to triple to 22,800 MW by 2031-32 with Nuclear Energy accounting for nearly 9% <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">of India&#8217;s electricity by 2047.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Operating Reactors: I<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ndia has<\/span><b> 23 operating reactors across 7 nuclear power plants<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, primarily composed of <\/span><b>pressurized heavy-water reactors (PHWRs), with some light-water reactors<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (LWRs)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Evolution:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Electricity production using nuclear energy <\/span><b>commenced in October 1969 with the commencement of the two reactors at Tarapur, Maharashtra.<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Ownership<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Nuclear power plants in India are <\/span><b>owned and operated by the Nuclear Energy Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and it&#8217;s <\/span><b>fully-owned subsidiary Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam (BHAVINI).\u00a0<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Public sector units like the<\/span><b> NTPC or NHPC are recently allowed to enter into joint ventures with NPCIL <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to own and operate nuclear plants.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Government Initiatives for Enhancing India\u2019s Nuclear Capacity:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Expansion: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India targets nuclear energy <\/span><b>expansion to 22,480 MW by 2031-32<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> which includes,\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"3\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>construction and commissioning of ten reactors, totalling 8,000 MW, <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">across Gujarat, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Karnataka, and Madhya Pradesh.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"3\"><b>In- principle approval was accorded to set up 6 x 1208 MW nuclear power plant in cooperation with the USA at Kovvada in Srikakulam distric<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t in the state of Andhra Pradesh.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Achieving Controlled Fission Chain Reaction: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>Rajasthan Atomic Power Project&#8217;s Unit-7 ( India\u2019s third indigenous nuclear reactors)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> reached criticality recently, marking the beginning of controlled fission chain reaction.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Progress in the <\/span><b>country&#8217;s first Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR 500 Mwe) achieving many of the milestones<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in 2024 like loading of first reactor control rod in 2024.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Bharat Small Reactors: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The government is actively <\/span><b>expanding its nuclear energy sector by developing Bharat Small Reactors (BSRs) i<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">n partnerships with the private sector<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>New Generation Reactors: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) to introduce <\/span><b>new nuclear reactors, including high-temperature gas-cooled reactors for hydrogen co-generation and molten salt reactors<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> aimed at utilizing India&#8217;s abundant thorium resources.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"vc_button\"><a href=\"https:\/\/store.pw.live\/govt-entrance-exams\/upsc-books\/upsc-textbooks?utm_source=SEO&#038;utm_medium=PW+Live&#038;utm_campaign=UPSC+Textbooks\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Check Out UPSC NCERT Textbooks From PW Store<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"vc_table_green\"><\/p>\n<table style=\"width: 99.6988%;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"width: 100%; border-style: solid; border-color: #000000; background-color: rgba(184, 165, 217, 0.53); text-align: left; vertical-align: middle;\">\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: 16pt; color: #000000;\"><b>Bharat Small Reactors<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">BSRs are<\/span><b> 220 MW Pressurized Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with a proven safety and performance record.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Objective<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: These reactors are being <\/span><b>upgraded to reduce land requirements, making them suitable for deployment near industries <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">such as steel, aluminium, and metals, serving as captive power plants to aid in decarbonization efforts.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Partnership: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Th<\/span><b>e private entities <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">will provide\u00a0 land, cooling water, and capital, while the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (<\/span><b>NPCIL) handles design, quality assurance,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and operation and maintenance, all within the existing legal framework.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: 16pt; color: #000000;\"><b>Bharat Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) is developing SMRs for<\/span><b> repurposing retiring coal-based power plants<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and meeting power needs in remote locations.<\/span><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Tata Consulting Engineers<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is working with the Department of Atomic Energy to build 40-50 BSMRs within seven or eight years.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Capacity: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SMRs, are advanced nuclear reactors with a power generation capacity <\/span><b>ranging from less than 30 MWe to 300+ MWe.<\/b><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Aim: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is being developed as a <\/span><b>crucial part of its energy transition strategy, aiming to achieve net-zero emissions while ensuring energy security.<\/b><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/div>\n<p><b><i>Ready to boost your UPSC 2025 preparation?<\/i><\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pw.live\/batches\/upsc?utm_source=seo+upsc+batch&#038;utm_medium=seo+upsc&#038;utm_campaign=seo&#038;utm_id=upsc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b><i>Join PW&#8217;s UPSC online courses<\/i><\/b><\/a><b><i> today!<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<div class=\"vc_table_green\"><\/p>\n<table style=\"width: 99.6375%;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 111.19%; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Also Read<\/b><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 49.797%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/editorial-analysis\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>UPSC Daily Editorials<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 61.393%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/daily-current-affairs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>UPSC Daily 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(SMRs).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":154531,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"paper-wise":[2089],"subject":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs\/154544"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/current-affairs"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=154544"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs\/154544\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":154547,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs\/154544\/revisions\/154547"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/154531"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=154544"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=154544"},{"taxonomy":"paper-wise","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/paper-wise?post=154544"},{"taxonomy":"subject","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/subject?post=154544"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}