Daily News Analysis

India, Russia ink pacts on construction of future power units of Kudankulam nuclear plant

stylish_lining

Context: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, who is on a five-day visit to Russia, made the announcement after his "comprehensive and productive" meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov on the bilateral economic cooperation during which they witnessed signing of agreements on nuclear power and in areas of medicines, pharmaceutical substances and medical devices.

Kudankulam nuclear plant

  • Kudankulam, situated in Tamil Nadu, stands as India's largest operational nuclear power plant, featuring two Russian- designed VVER-1000 reactors with a total capacity of 2,000 MW.
  • The construction began in March 2002. Since February 2016, the first power unit of the Kudankulam NPP has been steadily operating at its design capacity of 1,000 MW. The plant is expected to start operating at full capacity in 2027, according to Russian state media.
  • The reactors at Kudankulam are pressurized water reactors designed by Russia, specifically the VVER-1000/V-412 model, also known as AES-92.
  • An Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) for the project was signed on November 20, 1988, by then-Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi, and Soviet head of state, Mikhail Gorbachev. This agreement aimed at constructing two reactors.
  • The project faced a decade-long delay due to the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
  • In 2019, NPCIL (Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited) confirmed the presence of malware in the internet-connected administrative network. However, they asserted that the critical internal network was isolated from the cyber threat. Despite earlier denials, the malware was eventually linked to the Lazarus Group, a North Korea-based hacking entity.

India-UK Vision 2035

The Indian Prime Minister's visit to London was indeed a significant diplomatic milestone, as it unveiled the India–UK Vision 2035 roadmap and formalized the Comprehensive Economic and T
Share It

Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989

The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is a critical piece of legislation designed to protect the rights and dignity of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled
Share It

Financial Inclusion Index

The Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index), as reported by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), is a key metric that measures the level of financial inclusion across the country. Overview of the Fin
Share It

International Seabed Authority

The International Seabed Authority (ISA) is currently in the midst of negotiations regarding the extraction of metals from the high seas, particularly as U.S. efforts to fast-track this practice h
Share It

Election of Vice-President of India

Article 64 of the Constitution of India specifies that the Vice-President's post cannot remain vacant for any period of time, as it is essential for the functioning of the Rajya Sabha (Council
Share It

Maharashtra Scraps Hindi as Compulsory Third Language

The Maharashtra government recently scrapped its Government Resolutions (GRs) that mandated Hindi as a compulsory third language from Grades 1 to 5 in Marathi and English medium schools. While the
Share It

River Pollution in India

The Delhi government's focus on cleaning up the Yamuna River is part of a larger national effort to rejuvenate the Ganga River and its tributaries, in alignment with the Namami Gange Programme
Share It

Infrastructure Failures

The recent collapse of the Mahisagar River Bridge in Vadodara, which tragically claimed the lives of 20 people, underscores the growing concern over India's infrastructure quality. Similar
Share It

Special Intensive Revision (SIR)

The Supreme Court (SC) is currently reviewing the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) process for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, suggesting that Aadhaar,
Share It

GM Crop

In ongoing trade talks, the United States is advocating for India to open its agriculture market to genetically modified (GM) crops. However, India has firmly rejected this proposal, citing concer
Share It

Newsletter Subscription


ACQ IAS
ACQ IAS