GK · Chapter 13

Indian Nuclear Program

Governing Bodies · Research Centres · Reactors · Power Plants · Nuclear Tests

Overview

Father of Indian Nuclear Program: Dr. Homi J. Bhabha

1948Atomic Energy Commission

1954Dept. of Atomic Energy

1983AERB Formed

Governing Bodies

Body	Established	Key Details
Atomic Energy Commission	10 August 1948	First Chairman: Dr. Homi J. Bhabha
Department of Atomic Energy	3 August 1954	HQ: Mumbai; directly under the Prime Minister
Atomic Energy Regulatory Board	15 November 1983	Ensures safe and environmentally friendly use of atomic energy

⚡ QUICK RECALL Dr. Homi J. Bhabha wears two "first" hats: Father of the Indian Nuclear Program AND first Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission (1948).

Major Atomic Research Centres

Centre	Established	Location	Objective
Atomic Mineral Directorate (AMD)	1948	Hyderabad	Exploration/evaluation of atomic and critical mineral resources
Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL)	1950	Mumbai	Obtaining monazite commercially through processing
Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC)	1954	Trombay, Mumbai	Nuclear research and development; CIRUS Thermal Reactor built with Canada's cooperation
Uranium Corporation of India Ltd. (UCIL)	4 October 1967	Jaduguda, Jharkhand	Uranium mining and processing
Atomic Energy Education Society (AEES)	1969	Mumbai	Education up to 12th standard for DAE employees' children
Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR)	1971	Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu	R&D on Fast Breeder Reactors
Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre (VECC)	1977	Kolkata	Fundamental and applied nuclear science research
Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL)	1987	Mumbai	Construction and operation of nuclear power plants
Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT)	1984	Indore	Technology development in laser and cryogenics
Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership (GCNEP)	2010	Bahadurgarh, Haryana	Safe and clean nuclear energy expansion; reduces proliferation risk

⚠ EXAM TRAP The reactor built at BARC with Canadian cooperation is CIRUS (Canada-India Reactor, Utility Services), commonly mistyped as "CYRUS" — the two names are frequently confused in notes and low-quality sources.

Nuclear Reactors in India

Reactor	Established	Key Details
Apsara Reactor	1956	First reactor in Asia
CIRUS Reactor	10 July 1960	Built with Canadian cooperation
Zerlina Reactor	14 January 1961	—
Purnima Reactor	18 May 1972	—
Purnima II Reactor	10 May 1984	—
Dhruva Reactor	8 August 1985	—
Purnima III Reactor	9 November 1990	—
Kamini Reactor	29 October 1996	30 kWt U-233-fuelled research reactor, IGCAR
Apsara-U Reactor	10 September 2018	Upgraded version of Apsara

⚡ QUICK RECALL Apsara (1956): Asia's first research reactor. KAMINI (1996): a 30 kWt U-233-fuelled research reactor; PURNIMA-II had already used U-233 in 1984.

Nuclear Power Plants — World Context

Category	Country / Location	Year
First in the World	Russia (Obninsk)	1954
First full-scale commercial nuclear power station	Calder Hall, United Kingdom	1956; first full-scale commercial nuclear power station
First in India	Tarapur, Maharashtra (with US cooperation)	1969
Largest in India	Kudankulam, Tamil Nadu	2014

Nuclear Power Plants in India

Plant	Location	Established	Capacity
Tarapur	Maharashtra	1969	1400 MWe
Rawatbhata	Rajasthan	1973	1,780 MWe active listed capacity; RAPS-1 long shutdown
Kalpakkam	Tamil Nadu	1984	440 MWe
Narora	Uttar Pradesh	1991	440 MWe
Kakrapar	Gujarat	1993	1,840 MWe
Kaiga	Karnataka	2000	880 MWe
Kudankulam	Tamil Nadu	2014	2000 MWe

⚠ EXAM TRAP Tarapur is India's FIRST nuclear power plant (1969) by year, but Kudankulam is the LARGEST by capacity (2000 MWe, 2014) — don't confuse "first" with "largest."

India's Nuclear Tests

Test	Date	Site	Code Name	Capacity
First Nuclear Test	18 May 1974	Pokhran, Rajasthan	Smiling Buddha	12 Kilotonnes
Second Nuclear Test	11 & 13 May 1998	Pokhran, Rajasthan	Operation Shakti	—

Atomic Bombings on Japan (World War II)

Order	Date	City	Bomb Name
First	6 August 1945	Hiroshima	Little Boy
Second	9 August 1945	Nagasaki	Fat Man

⚡ QUICK RECALL Hiroshima → "Little Boy" (6 Aug); Nagasaki → "Fat Man" (9 Aug) — names and cities are often swapped in exams, so link them by date order.

Quick Reference Summary

Father of Indian Nuclear ProgramDr. Homi J. Bhabha

Atomic Energy CommissionEst. 10 August 1948

Department of Atomic EnergyEst. 3 August 1954; HQ: Mumbai

Atomic Energy Regulatory BoardFormed 15 November 1983

BARCTrombay, Mumbai; est. 1954; nuclear R&D

UCILJadugoda, Jharkhand; incorporated 1967; uranium mining

IGCARKalpakkam, Tamil Nadu; est. 1971; Fast Breeder Reactors

NPCILMumbai; est. 1987; nuclear power plants

GCNEPBahadurgarh, Haryana; est. 2010

First Reactor in AsiaApsara Reactor, 1956

Kamini Reactor30 kWt U-233-fuelled research reactor at IGCAR (1996)

First Nuclear Plant in WorldRussia (Obninsk), 1954

First Nuclear Plant in IndiaTarapur, Maharashtra, 1969

Largest Nuclear Plant in IndiaKudankulam, Tamil Nadu (2000 MWe)

First Nuclear Test (India)18 May 1974; Pokhran; Smiling Buddha; 12 kt

Second Nuclear Test (India)11–13 May 1998; Pokhran; Operation Shakti

Hiroshima Bombing6 August 1945; Bomb: Little Boy

Nagasaki Bombing9 August 1945; Bomb: Fat Man