Lok Sabha Question No. 6135 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-04-01
Subject: Electron Beam and Radiation Processing Facilities
Ministry: ATOMIC ENERGY
Asked by: Shri Dileshwar Kamait, Dr. Sanjay Jaiswal, Shri Haribhai Patel, Shri Satish Kumar Gautam, Smt. Kamaljeet Sehrawat

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## DEPARTMENT OF ATOMIC ENERGY LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO-6135 ANSWERED ON  01/04/2026

## ELECTRON BEAM AND RADIATION PROCESSING FACILITIES

6135.  SHRI DILESHWAR KAMAIT DR SANJAY JAISWAL SMT KAMALJEET SEHRAWAT SHRI HARIBHAI PATEL SHRI SATISH KUMAR GAUTAM Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:-
2. (a) the  details  of  the  number  of  electron  beam  processing  and  radiation  sterilisation facilities  established  as  of  February  2026  along  with  their  location  and  operational status;
3. (b) the major sectors in which these facilities are currently being utilised;
4. (c) the  volume  of  medical  devices,  pharmaceuticals  and  agricultural  or  food  products processes through these facilities as of February 2026;
5. (d) whether  these  facilities  are  being  operated  in  collaboration  with  public  sector undertakings, private industry or research institutions if so, the details thereof; and
6. (e) the details of benefits achieved through the use of radiation processing technologies particularly  in  terms  of  improved  food  safety,  reduction  in  post-harvest  losses  and availability of sterilised medical products?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES & PENSIONS AND PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

- (a) Two electron beam processing and radiation sterilization facilities established by the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) as of February 2026 as under:
- (i) Electron beam radiation processing facility at Indore, Madhya Pradesh named 'Agricultural Radiation Processing Facility' (ARPF):
- (ii)

The facility is based on 10 MeV, 6 kW electron linear accelerator (LINAC) developed by  Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT), a Constituent  Unit  of  DAE  and  is  being  operated  on  commercial  basis  for electron beam terminal sterilization of medical devices.  ARPF is licensed by the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) for regular operation.  Electron beam sterilization  of  Risk  Class  A  and  B  medical  devices  at  this  facility  is done  by  compliance  with  the  process  control  requirement  of  IS/ISO  11137 standard and Medical Device Rules (MDR), 2017, under a license issued by the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), Government of Madhya Pradesh. The  Quality  Management  System  of  the  facility  is  regularly  audited  by  a Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) Notified Body and is accredited to ISO 13485:2016 and ISO 9001:2015 standards.

- Electron beam radiation processing facility at Bengaluru, Karnataka :

This facility is established at Bengaluru under an agreement with Incubation Centre,  RRCAT,  Indore and an  Industry.    RRCAT  has  developed,  installed, commissioned  and  qualified  a  10  MeV,  10  kW  electron  linear  accelerator (linac),  'KIRTI-1010'  for  sterilization  of  medical  devices.    Application  to obtain license for commercial sterilization medical devices has been submitted to CDSCO which is under review at Karnataka State Licensing Authority.

- (b) The  facility is primarily being  utilized in health care sector  (medical  device sterilization).
- (c) Process qualification for e-beam sterilization of various medical devices (IV cannula, PP vials, blood collection tubes, surgical gloves, viral transport media tubes, collagen sheets, surgical syringe, collagen gauze pieces etc.) has been successfully completed. Medical  device  manufacturers  from  across  the  country  are  availing  of  the  e-beam services,  and  as  of  February  2026,  more  than  two  crore  medical  devices  have  been sterilised.
- (d) Out of two facilities developed by DAE, one is operated by RRCAT and another by private industry.
- i. Electron beam facility established at Indore, Madhya Pradesh is operated by RRCAT, DAE, Indore.
- ii. Electron beam facility established by RRCAT at Bengaluru, Karnataka is operated by private industry under the Incubation agreement between RRCAT and Industry.
- (e) DAE  is  involved  in  R&D  activities  pertaining  to  the  development  of  Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for preserving different agricultural produce commodities using ionizing radiation including electron beam and X-radiations from accelerator.  Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), a Constituent Unit of DAE, developed  radiation  technologies  extend  the  shelf  life  of  perishable  agricultural produce  and  prevent  post-harvest  losses  for  ensuring  food  security.    It  also  helps Indian  exporters  to  meet  international  quarantine  requirements  for  export  of  such commodities, thereby enabling access to high-value markets.  Notably, the shelf life of onion and potatoes has been extended up to 7.5 months and 8 months respectively, while  retaining  the  quality  attributes.    India  has  been  exporting  mangoes  and pomegranate  through  sea  route  in  a  cost-effective  manner  to  the  United  States  of America  (USA),  Australia,  South  Africa and  Malaysia  using  irradiation as a mandatory  phytosanitary  treatment.    SOPs  have  also  been  developed  for  shelf-life extension  of  cereals,  wheat,  spices,  mushroom,  fruits  and  vegetables  such  as  green tomato, broccoli, cherry fruits, semi dried apricot etc., benefiting farmers, traders and consumers.    Radiation  processing  also  enables  chemical-free  preservation  of  grains and spices by eliminating insects and microbes. The radiation based food preservation  technology  has  been  transferred to  private  entrepreneurs  on  nonexclusive  basis  for  commercialisation.    At  present  32  commercial  food  irradiation facilities utilizing Cobalt-60 are operational across the country which includes seven plants by Central / State Government Sector and 25 by private firms.

A  high-power  (10  MeV,  15  kW)  food  irradiation  linear  accelerator  has  been developed at RRCAT, Indore.  The LINAC has been qualified for irradiation of food and agricultural products.  Various R&D experiments are conducted in collaboration with  various  research  institutes  and  universities  (BARC-Mumbai,  Indira  Gandhi Krishi  Vishwavidyalaya  (IGKV)-Raipur,  Indian  Council  of  Agricultural  Research (ICAR) institutes, Central Agricultural Univesity-Manipur, etc.) to develop the new crop  varieties  in  Groundnut,  Chick  pea,  Lobia,  Field  Pea,  Rice,  Barnyard  Millets,

Garlic,  Finger  millet,  Pearl  millet,  Sorghum,  Foxtail  millet  and  explore  the  use  of electron beam technology to improve food safety, reduction in post-harvest losses and quarantine  treatment  in  Guava,  Grapes,  Potato  and  tribal  food  products  like  kodu, kutki etc., in collaboration with BARC-Mumbai, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwavidyalaya  (JNKVV)-Jabalpur,  DRDO-Defense  Food  Research  LaboratoryMysore.

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