MAINS 2013
GS1
10 marks
With growing scarcity of fossil fuels, atomic energy is gaining more and more significance in India. Discuss the availability of raw material required for generation of atomic energy in India and in the world.
WRITE IN
7 min
200 words
What the examiner wants
Discuss where uranium and thorium come from in India and the world.
DiscussExplain the different sides of the issue, use evidence, and finish with a balanced view.
Demand-wise check
- 1India uranium: low grade, Jaduguda (Jharkhand), Tummalapalle (Andhra Pradesh), Meghalaya≈35 words
- 2India thorium: large monazite deposits in coastal sands of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh≈35 words
- 3World: Australia has the largest uranium resources; Kazakhstan is largest producer; Canada, Namibia≈35 words
- 4Strategy: three-stage programme to use thorium; imports after 2008 NSG waiver≈35 words
Open in about 30 words and close in about 30.
Answer plan
Need for nuclear powerIndia uraniumIndia thoriumWorld sourcesThree-stage programmeConclusion
Where marks usually go
- Not covering the world part
- No mention of thorium and the three-stage plan
Draw this
- Map of India with uranium sites and monazite coasts, plus a small world box
Value addition
- ProgrammeHomi Bhabha's three-stage programme (1954): PHWR → fast breeder → thorium reactors.DAE
- EventNSG waiver (September 2008) let India import uranium from Kazakhstan, Canada, Russia.NSG, 2008
Next: plan for one minute, write it in 7 minutes, then get it checked.