HIGHLIGHTS OF AERB ACTIVITIES AT A GLANCE
During the year 2015-16, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) continued to carry out safety monitoring and regulatory supervision of nuclear and radiation facilities under its purview. AERB continued its regulatory safety oversight on Indian operating nuclear power plants (21 units), nuclear power projects (2 under site evaluation, 5 under construction and 1 under commissioning), several fuel cycle facilities, research units and large numbers of radiation facilities spread across the country.
All operating nuclear power plants and fuel cycle facilities under AERB's purview operated safely during the year and radioactive discharges as well as doses to occupational workers were well within prescribed limits. The radioactive releases from NPPs remained well within the limits authorized by AERB and the effective dose to public around the NPP sites was far less than the annual limit of 1 mSv (1000 micro-Sievert) prescribed by AERB. The maximum individual radiation dose among occupational workers has also remained well below the annual limit of 30 mSv prescribed by AERB.
Key Achievements during the year,
Ø Completed the development and deployment of the AERB's e-governance initiative for e- Licensing of Radiation Applications 'e-LORA’
o More than 35000 X-ray units declared in the system and 23,500 equipment registered o Increase in the approval of Radiological Safety ofcers (RSO) o Signicantly contributed in reduction of review time o AERB received the “SKOCH Smart Governance Award -2015” for e-LORA
Ø Licensing/Consent/Review of Nuclear Power Projects
o License for regular operation of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Projects Unit-1 (KKNPP Unit - 1) issued for a period of ve years o Siting consent issued for four units each of 700 MWe PHWR for Gorakhpur Haryana Anu Vidyut Pariyojna, Haryana o Consent for Site Excavation issued to KKNPP-3&4, rst sub stage of construction clearance o Permission for melting of sodium in one of the Secondary Sodium Storage Tank and its recirculation for purication as a part of Pre-commissioning activities for Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor, BHAVINI, Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu o Pre-Consenting design review of Indian Pressurised Water Reactor (IPWR), a (900 MWe /2700 MWt indigenous Pressurised Water Reactor)
Ø Renewal of Licenses of operating Nuclear Facilities
o Renewal of licenses for operation of Tarapur Atomic Power Stations – 1 & 2, Madras Atomic Power Station, Rajasthan Atomic Power Stations -5&6 o Renewal of License for operation of Bagjata,Jaduguda Mill and Turamdih Mill of Uranium Corporation of India Ltd.(UCIL), the Heavy Water Plants (HWP) at Manuguru,Kota, Talcher, Baroda and Hazira
Ø Conducted nationwide campaign of surprised inspections of Medical diagnostic X-ray Units Ø Four new Safety Codes and Seven Safety Guidelines/Guides published, taking to total of more than 156 regulatory documents published by AERB
Ø Emergency Preparedness & Response at NPPs
o AERB ofcials witnessed site emergency exercises at six nuclear power stations and offsite emergency exercises at four sites o Conducted special regulatory inspections on emergency preparedness aspects o Issued guidelines for ensuring harmonization of all EPR plans of NPPs as per AERB Safety Guidelines on “Criteria for Planning, Preparedness and Response for Nuclear or Radiological Emergency” o Completed design review of On-Site Emergency Support Centre at NPPs
Ø Safety Analysis & Research Development
o Independent safety analysis and research on important areas of nuclear and radiation safety to support the regulatory decisions on areas covering Severe Accident (SA) studies, hydrogen distribution & Mitigation studies, reactor physics studies, source term estimation for radiological impact assessment, coupled thermal-hydraulics & structural studies, and probabilistic comparison of risk in Multi-unit NPP sites etc.
Ø International Cooperation
o Hosted a four-day international workshops on NPPs-SAFETY & SUSTAINABILITY o Contributed through participation in international cooperation activities with organizations such as International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)/Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA), CANDU Senior Regulator's meeting, the VVER regulators forum, Multinational Design Evaluation Program and bilateral cooperation with international nuclear regulators
Ø Public Communication and Information
o Implemented mechanism for obtaining comments from the general public on Safety Codes o 12 Press releases were issued on the different topical issues o Regular updates were provided during KAPS Unit-1 PT leak incident o 9 awareness programs on radiation safety covering a wide target audience o 3 exhibitions in Science and Technology fairs o Advertisements in print media to sensitize the users on requirements of AERB for use of medical x-ray equipment as well as for users of radioactive sources or radiation generating equipment
Ø Human Resources Development
o Augmentation of manpower and competency enhancement through competency mapping o On-Job training of AERB Ofcers at sites o Two senior ofcers from AERB were deputed for a one year assignment to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) under bilateral exchange of technical information and cooperation in nuclear safety matters o Provided training on 'Regulatory Framework for Nuclear Power Plants and Fuel Cycle Facilities' for ofcials from various Nuclear Organizations of Bangladesh.