NEW DELHI: A water leak forced the shutdown of a nuclear power plant in the western Indian state of Gujarat on Friday, but no nuclear material was in danger of being released at the Kakrapar Atomic Power Station, an official said.
“No worker has been exposed to radiation and no radioactivity was reported outside the plant,” said K.S Pradeep Kumar, associate director at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) that oversees nuclear safety in India.
He said employees remained sequestered for hours, a standard operating procedure, and team of scientists had started safety checks. The reactor is expected to take another 24 hours to cool down.
There are two pressurised heavy water reactors at Kakrapar that have been in service for over 20 years and are operated by the state-owned Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd.
(Reporting by Rupam Jain; Editing by Douglas Busvine)
Reuters
