IEEJ: May 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Nuclear Safety and Credibility in India
By Monamie Bhadra, PhD Candidate
Arizona State University
Human & Social Dimensions of Science and Technology Program
International Nuclear Energy Symposium, Tokyo, May 17-20

IEEJ: May 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Nuclear safety = Accountability• How do different actors know and trust that the Indian
government has taken necessary measures, and evenexceeded its duty, in ensuring the safety of its citizens?
• How can people rest assured that their health and theenvironment will be protected, not only if the unthinkableoccurs, but also during the everyday operations of a nuclearfacility?
• There are two different audiences to whom the Indian statemust demonstrate its credibility: domestic and international

IEEJ: May 2015. All Rights Reserved.
IEEJ: May 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Little institutional
separation between
Department ofAtomic Energy (DAE)and the Atomic
Energy Regulatory
Board (AERB)IEEJ: May 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Credibility performances fordomestic audiences• Mayapuri incident of 2010 and Fukushima of2011 sparked national concern and prompted
limited reevaluation of India’s regulatory
structures• Nuclear Safety Regulatory Authority Bill of2011 was introduced to the Indian Parliament,
but has since lapsed.

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Necessity to engage with citizen
scientific counter-expertiseIEEJ: May 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Need to develop credibility withrural populations
According to nuclear
official presiding over thepublic hearing of the
Jaitapur nuclear power
plant environmental
impact assessment, thecolors are actuallyinverted, with redmeaning least intense.

JaitapurNPPIEEJ: May 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Expectation of automatic trust in
nuclear expertiseIEEJ: May 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Early national leaders created a cultureof scientific expertise• Developing scientific expertise in nuclear power wascentral to anchoring the pursuit of development in anation, reeling from the violence of Indian Partitionand creating credibility with Indian masses.
• Leaders thought Indian masses would only be readyfor genuine citizenship when they cultivated a“scientific temper.”IEEJ: May 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Changing credibility perceptions• Now, mere proclamations of expertise nolonger garner trust. Many citizens havecultivated a “scientific temper”, and somehave become scientific counter-experts.
• If an Indian democracy wishes to pursue
nuclear power, it must engage with citizenscience.

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Cultivating credibility with aninternational audience• US-India nuclear deal, the first of several bilateral agreements,
has prompted India to take seriously international safety
standards, such as creating an independent regulatory agency.
• IAEA: “The government should embed the AERB’s regulatory
independence in law, separated from other entities having
responsibilities or interests that could unduly influence its
decision-making…The AERB should consider increasing thefrequency of routine on-site inspections at NPPs to allow for
additional independent verification and more effective
regulatory oversight.”•Source: https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/pressreleases/iaea-mission-concludes-peerreview-indias-nuclear-regulatory-frameworkIEEJ:
May
2015.
RightsReserved.
IEEJ:
May2015.
AllAllRightsReserved.

Acknowledgements:
The American Institute for Indian Studies (AIIS),
Clark Miller (adviser), Chad Monfreda, Sharlissa Moore, Shobita Parthasarathy

Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant Construction, Jan 2010,
Contact: report@tky.ieej.or.jp