The need for more and more energy is incessant throughout the world be it times of global market uncertainty or stability to drive socio-economic progress and to create a better living for the human element living in the world. But of course, energy comes with its kind of responsibility of catering to the requirements of every generation by using resources judiciously. We are thus bound to shield the people and the environment around us.
Although energy is essential for all countries, developing countries still require it to a greater extent as the need for reasonably priced and dependable energy is more vital because it can even save lives but the saddening fact is that the majority of energy consumption comes from hydrocarbons where crude oil is the dominant source that eventually results in huge environmental ramifications. It is also projected that the global energy demand would surge by about 25% in the period from 2014 to 2040.[1]
“It is time for a sustainable energy policy which puts consumers, the environment, human health, and peace first”, quoted Dennis Kucinich. The rapid economic growth of a country is highly dependent on the amount of energy available at its disposal. The exploitation of a huge amount of energy leads to harmful emissions and thus it is fact that no country is ever able to lift its economic status without a corresponding rise in the level of emissions. Bharat is a major force in the global economy in terms of energy and hence, to become a forward-moving developed country, the emissions will certainly have to rise and the process and progress have started already.
Bharat’s current energy matrix
Since the year 2000, the energy consumption in the country has more than doubled for which, the ceaselessly growing population is surely a cause. Industrialization and urbanization have caused energy demand to rise at an unprecedented rate. The Covid-19 pandemic has strongly affected the use of energy in the country due to which, there is also a slight fill in demand. Investments in this sector also bore the brunt of the pandemic which led to dwindling of investment by around 15% in 2020, aggravating financial strains across the board.
Although the use of energy saw a decline, the electricity demand still kept rising. Over 80% of Bharat’s energy needs are fulfilled by the use of majorly three fuels namely: coal, oil, and solid biomass but is very shocking to state that with 17% of the world population, Bharat accounts for only 0.8% of the world-known oil and natural gas resources. Although the market share for biomass is on the downside, it is still widely used as a fuel for cooking in rural areas.
While these are somewhat sources that are detrimental to the health of our environment, Renewable sources and Natural gas have also started gaining ground and were also not much affected by the pandemic which had destroyed every other sphere. Bharat is focusing more on the sources which are less injurious and more industrious for the country and here are where nuclear energy comes into much focus.
How Nuclear energy is created? How is it better?
This form of energy is released from the nucleus, the core of atoms, which consists of protons and neutrons. There are two ways to generate this kind of energy – fusion, and fission. Fission if when an atom’s nuclei split into several parts and Fusion is when nuclei fuse. Each time the reaction occurs in nuclear fission, there is a release of energy in form of radiation and heat energy.
In a nuclear power plant, nuclear reactors and their equipment are placed which control all the chain reactions to produce heat through fission. There is a reaction inside the reactors between heat and the cooling agent, usually water, that produces steam. This steam is then incorporated to spin turbines and thus electricity is formed.
Many environmentalists are of the view that nuclear power has the potential to become our rescue from the already scorching and more meteorologically destructive world. Everything has its pros and cons and, in the same way, nuclear energy too comes with its head and tail. Focusing our attention towards the positive aspects of nuclear energy:
- Since it generates energy via nuclear fission, it hinders the creation of an iniquitous element, carbon, the chief gas contributing to global warming.
- The operation of nuclear power is done at a much higher capacity factor than fossil fuels or renewable energy sources.
- The amount of radiation emitted by nuclear power is much less than other major sources of energy.
Bharat’s Nuclear program and its current energy security
The confirmation given by Smt. Indira Gandhi for Bharat’s first nuclear test in 1972 on her visit to Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) was the country’s first step towards nuclear power generation. To make it a reality, scientists started working on it and also started locating an apposite site to conduct the test which is commonly known as “Smiling Buddha” where the test was conducted two years later after the approval i.e. in 1974.
Bharat’s Nuclear policy is deep-rooted with a specific and unambiguous assurance to the policy of “no first use” which acts as an effective deterrence. Bharat, although being one of the front runners in terms of nuclear energy, has always endorsed the idea of nuclear disarmament. “When supreme national security interests eventually dictated that India had no option but to go further down the nuclear road, India adopted a purely defensive no first use nuclear policy. This policy is not only consistent with its strategic culture but also extremely responsible and mindful of the horrendous destruction that nuclear weapons can cause” said late PM Morarji Desai in one of his interviews.[2]
At the Millennium summit of the UN in 2000, the Bharatiya Prime Minister assured the fact that the country would continue to press for universal, verifiable nuclear disarmament. Bharat at present is standing at a level of 22 nuclear reactors and thus among the top 10 countries in terms of the number of reactors with the United States of America leading with 99 nuclear reactors at its disposal. Nuclear energy is among the 5 largest sources of energy for Bharat besides coal, gas, hydroelectricity, and wind energy. The total capacity generation of all the nuclear reactors is 7,380 MW.[3] Thus we can say that Bharat’s nuclear power generation is in vogue.
Why abandon Carbon?
Fossil fuels that are exploited for the generation of energy mainly consist of carbon and hydrogen. When these are burnt, CO2 gas is produced and exposure to these harmful gases can lead to serious health ramifications which include coma, asphyxia, high blood pressure, etc. besides all human health effects, it is wrecking our climate and thus there is a need for a transformative step towards lessening our dependency on fossil fuels which cause a lot of noxious pollution.
A recent U.N. study found that climate change could “push more than 120 million more people into poverty by 2030 and will have the most severe impact in poor countries, regions, and the places poor people live and work.”[4] The people working inside these companies also face several ailments due to contaminated smoke produced during the chemical reactions. Bharat’s road to net-zero carbon emissions surely won’t be a bed of roses and there are many challenges facing the country and the world.
Thus, it requires a plethora of strategic planning in the years ahead. Presently being the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, it went overboard and overambitious while unfolding its target of net-zero carbon emissions to be achieved by 2070. Net-Zero emissions refer to a situation where the country strikes a balance between greenhouse gas emissions production and removal through natural means. Achieving this goal would require incessant work towards the elimination of fossil fuels, on which the country is still largely hooked. The pledge “will provide policy certainty to industry to invest in decarbonization technologies, and will also inspire India’s states and cities to set their own net-zero pathways to development”, said Ulka Kelkar, director of the climate program at World Resources Institute, India[5].
Conclusion
The growth of energy is directly proportional to the well-being and economic prosperity of the country around the world. The way of generating electricity is a considerable factor in this race for global economic success. The use of fossil fuels brings with it a significant number of hitches like global warming, health hazards, climate adversities, etc. Already the country’s resources are insufficient to meet the requirements for the present times, and this Covid-19 pandemic has worsened the situation. But we should have a positive outlook towards the situation to bring out the best that can be done to resolve that issue.
Thus, instead of lamenting over the fact of fewer energy resources, working to surge their availability and that too of those resources which are innocuous to the environment and human beings should be focused upon. Fossil fuels should be disowned to reduce the carbon effect on the environment which has disastrous fallouts. Nuclear energy can be a life savior in this battle for sustainable and harmless sources of energy. It is comparatively environment friendly in terms that it causes negligible carbon emissions which eventually can be a new normal for the country and the world because Bill Gates once said, “Nuclear energy, in terms of an overall safety record, is better than other energy and is here to stay”.
-By Gaurang Takkar (Army Institute of Law, Mohali)
[1] https://www.imperialoil.ca/en-ca/Company/About/The-importance-of-energy#:~:text=For%20developing%20nations%2C%20the%20need,increased%20trade%20and%20improved%20transportation.&text=All%20sources%20of%20energy%20are%20needed.
[2] https://ciaotest.cc.columbia.edu/olj/sa/sa_feb01kag01.html
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_power_in_India
[4] https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/research/8-reasons-why-we-need-to-phase-out-the-fossil-fuel-industry/
[5] https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2021/11/05/can-india-achieve-net-zero-carbon-emissions-by-2070-the-road-is-long-but-not-impossible.html
