Posted on 03/08/2005 12:00:28 AM PST by CarrotAndStick
TARAPUR: India's nuclear programme crossed an important milestone on Sunday when the country's largest and the first 540 megawatt (MWE) nuclear pressurised heavy water reactor was commissioned at 12.42 pm at Tarapur, a nearly three-hour drive from Mumbai. It is the fourth unit at this atomic power station and the 15th one in the country.
Immediately after the reactor became operational, national security adviser M K Narayanan, who was waiting with other dignitaries in a hall next to the hi-tech control room, declared: "It is a great moment of celebration for India. The sanctions imposed by some countries have hastened the indigenisation process." The unit which was commissioned on Sunday is completely indigenous, ushering in a new era in India's nuclear history.
The moments before the reactor started functioning were full of excitement and drama in the reactor's control room. Since it was a new type of reactor, the criticality took a longer time, testing the patience of the nuclear scientists and engineers. Some of them who were visibly tense were continuously monitoring an equipment known as the "Start Up Instrumentation System".
In an adjoining hall, several dignitaries including Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) chairman Anil Kakodkar, chairman and managing director of Nuclear Power Corporation (NPC) S K Jain and former AEC chief M R Srinivasan were waiting anxiously for the important moment.
The moments ticked away and at one point the figures in the "Start Up Instrumentation System" became constant. This was at 12.42 pm. At this point, the reactor finally became critical, triggering a round of loud applause. The mood which was so far tense instantly turned into one of relief and jubilation. People exchanged congratulatory handshakes and embraced each other. Station director D K Goyal declared : "The chain reaction has started."
The achievement of criticality is a very important milestone in the life of a nuclear reactor as it indicates that it is now able to produce heat which is needed for electricity production. TAPS-4 (Tarapur Atomic Power Station) achieved criticality in just five years from the date of first pouring of concrete and seven months ahead of schedule. It will undergo various tests and start giving electricity to the western grid in a commercial manner from August 2005.
Sanctions imposed by the US on India caused large scale indigenisation, and has been seen to benefit India's research programmes greatly.
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