The Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

It is heartening to see indigenously developed pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWR) finally getting into the mainstream of India’s energy push towards a net-zero compliant Viksit Bharat . The 100 GWe (gigawatt electric) nuclear energy mission launched by the Government is to be realised by 2047.

The high rate of capacity addition necessary for such a deployment would need a credible implementation framework as well as standardised technologies that are mature and commercially competitive. PHWRs are a fit case for the purpose.

The attendant steep increase in uranium imports is, however, a matter of concern.…