NEW DELHI, 6 July 2007 — India decided yesterday to join the global nuclear fusion plan by contributing to the building of International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), saying it would be a clean source for the country’s soaring energy needs.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The cost of the project, “Indian Participation in ITER,” is estimated at Rs.25 billion.
The Indian Cabinet said New Delhi would contribute $620 million to build the reactor, a deal which was signed by more than 30 countries last year.
The objective of ITER is to demonstrate the feasibility of producing electricity from a fusion reaction, which involves fusing atomic nuclei at extremely high temperatures inside a giant electromagnetic ring.
“India’s joining of ITER is a recognition of its scientific and technical capability in fusion energy,” a government statement said after the federal Cabinet cleared the project.
“Considering India’s large energy needs in future, our gaining technological capability in fusion energy will be of considerable long-term benefit,” it said.
Participation in the project would allow India to “leapfrog in terms of our national technological capability in fusion energy,” it added.
Construction of the 500-megawatt reactor, to be based near the southern French city of Marseille, is forecast to cost about 5 billion euros ($6.8 billion) and take 10 years to complete.
Another 5 billion euros will be needed to operate it over a 20-year period.
Its backers say ITER would be cleaner than existing nuclear reactors and also a cheaper and abundant source of energy as the end of fossil fuels looms.
But critics argue it could be at least 50 years before a commercially viable reactor is built, if one is built at all.
New Delhi has hailed its inclusion in the project as a global acceptance of its nuclear capabilities, something it struggled to gain in the past after refusing to sign non-proliferation pacts and testing nuclear weapons.
The Cabinet also approved President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s proposal of setting up a pan-African e-network to bridge the digital divide in Africa. The Rs. 5.429 billion project will link 53 countries of the African Union. Highlighting its significance, Information and Broadcasting Minister P.R. Dasmunsi said: “The project will showcase India’s capability in the IT (information technology) sector, technology, health care and education.” The e-network would enable India to share its expertise in health care and education with all AU member countries, he said.
During his visit to South Africa in 2004, Kalam had proposed to connect the 53 nations of AU by satellite and fiber optic network when he addressed the inaugural session of the Pan-African Parliament. The proposal moved forward with the inking of an India-AU Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in 2005 and draft country agreements between each AU member nation and the state-run TCIL (Telecommunications Consultants of India Limited).
Twenty-three countries have already signed the model agreement with TCIL, Dasmunsi said. Successful implementation of the project is expected to enhance India’s profile in the region and add a fresh dimension to the country’s partnership with Africa, he said.
In addition, the Cabinet gave its approval for regulating employment of Indian nationals in Kuwait and Qatar. The Cabinet gave its approval for signing the MOU on labor, employment and manpower development between India and Kuwait. The Cabinet approved inking of additional protocol to the agreement on regulation of employment of Indian manpower between India and Qatar. The two agreements would benefit Indian workers, especially the unskilled, semi-skilled and skilled, according to an official statement.
