Separation plan with IAEA
India has notified its Separation Plan to the International Atomic Energy Agency, almost 14 months after the 35-member board of governors of the IAEA approved the country-specific nuclear safeguards agreement.
India has notified its Separation Plan to the International Atomic Energy Agency, almost 14 months after the 35-member board of governors of the IAEA approved the country-specific nuclear safeguards agreement.
The notification formalities were completed on Thursday, a crucial step in implementing international civil nuclear cooperation, Department of Atomic Energy sources said.
The India Specific Safeguards Agreement (ISSA) or the ‘umbrella’ agreement approved by the IAEA Board on August 1 last year can now officially enter into force, formally separating India’s civilian and strategic nuclear establishments.
India will place 14 reactors under ISSA of international nuclear watchdog by 2014.
The separation plan was officially announced in March 2006 during US President George W Bush’s visit to India.
IAEA will begin implementing the new Safeguards Agreement this year by inspecting the Uranium fuel fabrication at the Nuclear Fuel Complex at Hyderabad and its transfer and loading on the newly constructed RAPS (Rajasthan Atomic Power Station) 5 and 6.
The agency currently applies safeguards to six Indian nuclear reactors (units 1 and 2 at Tarapur, units 1 and 2 of RAPS, units 1 and 2 of Koodankulam) under the agreement.
India will place Units 3 and 4 of RAPS under safeguards in 2010, two units of Kakrapar Atomic Power Station and two units of Narora Atomic Power Station in 2012 and 2014 respectively, the sources said.
Under the separation plan, India has decided to permanently shut down the CIRUS research reactor located inside Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, country’s strategic lab, in 2010.