THERE are more than 150 "hazardous areas" in Indian nuclear installations which could prove to be disastrous, according to a report on the country's semi secret nuclear industry.
The Indian Express, quoting official sources, said that in the latest incident, storage tanks holding radioactive waste at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) at Tarapur and Trombay near the western city of Bombay had developed leaks.
The storage tanks, containing thousands of gallons of liquid waste from BARC's plutonium reprocessing plant at Trombay also had ageing welded joints which led to small, but frequent leakage of radioactive material the report said.
The Tarapur plant is located near an active earthquake zone and tremors are increasingly being recorded in the region.
According to the report by the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, improvements in the emergency core systems of power plant reactors are "desirable".
The report also recommends closer evaluation and inspection of pressurised heavy water reactors, further reduction of workers' exposure to atomic radiation and lowering the potential for leakage from radioactive waste management systems.
The Safe Energy Communication Council of the United States has said India's nuclear power plants were among the world's least efficient and most dangerous. It said India operated some of the world's most accident prone and inefficient nuclear facilities.
Radioactive material from Tarapur's waste immobilisation plant leaked into the sub soil for over six weeks last April, contaminating the drinking water supply off around 3,000 villagers nearby.
Nuclear officials admitted that though the storage tanks were shut down after the leak was discovered, radioactive water had already been seeping into the ground for at least 45 days. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, however, did not publicise the accident until it was revealed by a local newspaper.
This is not the first time that an accident has taken place in India's burgeoning nuclear facilities, which include 10 power stations, four research reactors, six heavy water plants and several related facilities. According to a recent parliamentary report, 147 mishaps have been reported over the last four years. Of these, 28 incidents occurred in nine of 10 nuclear power stations, but officials said none was classified as "serious".