Adrian Levy is once again stirring the pot with a lot of stale news about Indian nuclear program. The usual suspects, Ratehalli, some random villagers nearby who think it is bad idea, and the absolute cover of secrecy about an upcoming plant -- the intent of this article seems to be an attempt to get all the anti Indo-US deal people to start rumbling again or something along those lines...why?
For example, this claim India was violating elements of the Indo-US deal while it was still being negotiated.
But as Mr. Banerjee clearly states, there is no violation of civil/military separation outlined in the Indo-US deal, so this is a lot hot air from Adrian Levy once again.Starting Work While the Nuclear Deal’s Ink Is Still Wet
Nonetheless, lawyers acting for the villagers living close to Challakere eventually forced some important disclosures. The Parliament’s representative for the region heard about plans for the park from the Indian defense minister as early as March 2007, according to a copy of personal correspondence between the two, seen by the Center.
Then, Adrian Levy pretends all the Uranium India has acquired from the spot markets and deals with other countries is liable to be used in Indian military sites by not explicitly stating that India is not using this uranium in sites that not under IAEA oversight. Use of U from Ratehalli for military program is allowed under the Indo-US deal. Wonder what is inducing Khujli in Adrian Levy to rake all this up.Srikumar Banerjee, the chairman of India’s Atomic Energy Commission, first offered an official glimpse of the project’s ambitions in 2011 when he told CNN’s Indian news channel that the enrichment plant could be used to produce nuclear fuel, or slightly enriched uranium, to power India’s heavy and light water reactors.
However, Banerjee added that the site would also have a strategic use, a designation that would keep international inspectors away.
India has already received 4,914 tons of uranium from France, Russia and Kazakhstan, for example, and it has agreements with Canada, Mongolia, Argentina and Namibia for additional shipments.
In September 2014, Prime Minister Tony Abbott of Australia signed an agreement to make his country a “long-term, reliable supplier of uranium to India,” a deal that has sparked considerable controversy among Australians.
The International Panel on Fissile Materials estimates that the Arihant class submarine core requires only 65kg of uranium, enriched to 30 percent. Using this figure and the estimated capacity of the centrifuges India is installing in Mysore alone—not even including Challakere—Kelley concluded that, even after fueling its entire submarine fleet, there would be 160kg of weapons-grade uranium left over, every year, or enough to fuel at least 22 H-bombs.
His calculation presumes that the plant is run efficiently, and that its excess capacity is purposeful and not driven by bureaucratic inertia—two large uncertainties in India, a senior U.S. official noted. But having a “rainy day” stockpile to deter the Chinese might be the aim, the official added.