Narendra Modi has got the Canadians ready to supply us with Uranium for civilian nuclear energy. Great! But, what does this mean? Why the big push for nuclear power? And why are some activists against it? Watch:
Here’s what you need to know about nuclear energy in India:
– Currently, india is largely dependent on coal for it’s energy needs. Coal is non-renewable, which means that some day, probably sooner than we expect, we are going to run out. It is also one of the most polluting energy sources.
Besides, India is growing at a rapid rate.This means more acs, tvs and fridges. We need all the energy we can get, from wherever we can get
– Nuclear energy accounts for less than 3% of our total output, and the plan is to raise that number to 25% by 2050.
– We have 21 nuclear power plants in India and there are plans for more. What we don’t have is Uranium. The deal with Canada will provide 3000 tonnes of Uranium over 5 years. If we have any hope of meeting even part of our energy needs through nuclear power, deals like this are a must.
– So we need energy, and nuclear power seems to be one of the govt.’s most viable options. So why are so many activists protesting nuclear plants in Kudankulam and Jaitpur? There are fears of an accident like in Chernoby and Fukushima. There also questions around how to safely dispose of nuclear waste. So far, India has not had a major accident like accident.
So should we risk a potential accident? Remember, we are talking about a substantial amount of energy for a growing, aspirational nation.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments section.
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