The accident at Kakrapar Atomic Power Station (KAPS) - Unit 1 that triggered panic of possible radio-active leak early in March this year, is still under investigation but the same was termed specific to the Kakrapar unit, while other such Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWR) continue to be safe, claimed the chief of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) here.

“The incident at Kakrapar unit was a serious one. One of the coolant channels had started leaking but there was no radiation released even within the plant complex. There are 22 reactors operational across India and immediate attention was paid to the other reactors on all safety aspects,” said SA Bharadwaj, Chairman, AERB here. “The incident is still under investigation, but we know where to focus on. One of the unusual indications of local corrosion spots was noticed on the coolant channels. The investigation may take some more time. But the problem faced by the unit was specific to Kakrapar unit, while other reactors are continue to be safe,” added Bharadwaj ruling out doubts about the safety aspects of the technology of PHWRs in the country.

On March 11, the Unit 1 of KAPS near Surat had reported a leak from a coolant channel. The preliminary investigations had found that the failed coolant channel had three cracks. The AERB chief was in town for the 33rd Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) Safety & Occupational Health Professionals Meet at Institute for Plasma Research, Gandhinagar on November 23-25, jointly organised by AERB and IPR. The theme for this year’s meet is ‘Safety in High Power and High Energy Advanced Technologies’ and ‘Clinical Applications of Lasers’.

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