Projects upcoming with Russian, French and US
India’s Civil nuclear sector is set to grow in the upcoming years as proposals of projects to be set up with Russian, French and US technical cooperation are at various stages of discussion, said the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) on 25 Jan 2020.
Citing the growth potential, the Department of Atomic Energy has also told the industry, as its core partner, to tap the growth potential of exporting to South Asia technologies that have been developed in the country in the health and agriculture sectors.
“As the industry is core partner of DAE, we encourage responsible and collaborative efforts to ensure compliance to the legal and regulatory framework while promoting trade and economic growth,” said Head of DAE Nuclear Control and Planning Wing, Ranajit Kumar.
DAE has developed many technologies in health sector (especially for cancer treatment) and agriculture sector, he pointing out, adding that some of these have been exported these to different countries in the region.
Also, there is tremendous potential for creating growth in export to South Asian countries, he added.
He was speaking at the conference on ‘Export Controls and Trade in Nuclear Related Items, Materials and Technology’, organized by FICCI and DAE.
Mayank Joshi, Director, D&ISA Division added that India has been committed to ensuring non-proliferation of sensitive and dual-use materials, equipment and technologies.
“The Government and industry partnership is essential for implementing a strong and robust export control system. There is no doubt that industry is first and the most critical line of defence against proliferation. I would like to urge the industry to look at export controls as an enabling obligation,” elaborated Joshi.
“Nuclear is a non-forgiving sector where one incident can have far reaching global and political consequences,” cautioned G K Pillai, Managing Director & CEO of Walchandnagar Industries Ltd.
“Yet, today Indian Supply chain is self-reliant for 700 MWe PWHR program, and it is an outcome of the commitment of Indian manufacturing industries in terms of safety, quality assurance and compliance,” he highlighted.
With nuclear power sector in India poised for steady expansion, the complexity of licensed applications will grow over time, and the onus will be on the industry to improve its procedures and compliance metrics to effectively service the global value chain, said Dr Anupam Srivastava, Non-Resident Fellow at the Henry L. Stimson Center.
Specialised Chemicals, items and technologies which can be used in civil nuclear projects fall under ‘Dual Use’ category, i.e. items that have both civilian and military use, and are regulated under Indian export control list – SCOMET (Strategic Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment and Technologies. All items under this list require licence from DGFT, DAE or DDP/Ministry of Defence, prior to export of the regulated commodities.
Export of items under SCOMET have been increasing at a healthy rate in the past years, reflecting India’s growing technological prowess.
In 2018-19 alone, the DGFT, DAE and DDP received a total of 1,359 application for export of items under SCOMET. In the last three quarters of the current FY, the Govt has received 1,135 applications, and is expecting total number of applications for FY2019-20 to surpass last year’s figures.
In recognition of India’s non-proliferation track record, three key multilateral export control regimes Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) and Australia Group (AG) have admitted the country into its membership.
Entry into these elite trade control regimes makes it easier for India to access several advanced dual use technologies. While India is not a member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), its policies are harmonised with the trade regime.
Since 2007, FICCI said it has been playing a defining role in enhancing industry awareness, building capacity and strengthening industry compliance regarding India’s strategic trade control policies and requirements.
FICCI has advocated for industry to be the first point of defence by adopting best practices like Internal Compliance Programmes (ICP) particularly amongst the MSME’s. fiinews.com
