FOR:
To cook, we need energy. To travel, we need energy. To communicate, we need energy. To manufacture, we need energy. Basically to exist, we need energy. So the question arises that from where does a developing country like India gets this humungous amount of energy for the survival of its 1.22 billion people. Does it rely on the sun to shine down according to its will or does it wait for the wind to pick up speed or worse still does it sit in the hope that a river will flow one day through the deserts that abound our nation? Or instead does it go ahead and utilise its uranium reserves which are in abundance considering the present day scenario and generate an energy which is efficient, reliable as well as feasible?
With a large amount of uranium available to be exploited in India, the first choice for an alternative source of energy lies in nuclear power. Being a highly efficient source of energy, there is hardly any debate about why the country should rethink about making advances in the field of nuclear energy and question its target of reaching a nuclear power capacity of 63,000 MW by 2032. Unlike thermal power plants, nuclear power plants have the advantage of being a non-polluting source of energy as there is no release of greenhouse gases and the nuclear waste generated is minimal in quantity and if managed effectively, will not pose a nuisance.
Yes, I agree to the fact that nuclear energy has had a stained history if we are to recall the Chernobyl Disaster of 1986 and more recently the leaking of radioactive material from the Fukushima Daichi power plant in Japan due to the earthquake. These have been terrible accidents which continue to plague generations because of their radioactive nature. But then I ask you that do you stop flying in aeroplanes because there might be a possibility that the craft that you are about to board might crash? The point I’ve been trying to stress on here is that accidents are bound to happen be it in the form of a car crash or a radioactive leakage but then ceasing to drive a car or abandoning the concept of generating energy through nuclear power plants will never be a solution to such a problem.
Nuclear Energy does come along with a huge risk but if the construction and operation of a power plant if effectively supervised, leaving no scope for human error, then there is no stopping nuclear power to rule the energy sector. Emphasis does need to be given on the development of alternative, renewable sources of energy simultaneously but when we take the 1.22 billion population of India into account we realise that India does need nuclear energy to lighten the remotest of village and it is definitely not in a position to completely bank upon the erratic nature namely the sun, the wind, the waters to do the job of supplying electricity to its 1.22 billion people. Thus until the time the renewable sources are developed enough to take the burden, nuclear energy is the saviour of the nation for now and it’s high time we accept the fact.
