Russia’s energy clout doesn’t just come from oil and gas

Russia’s energy clout doesn’t just come from oil and gas – it’s a key nuclear supplier

Shankar Sharma, Power & Climate Policy Analyst based in Sagara, Karnataka, India writes to Dr A Gopalakrishnan, former chairman of Indian Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (1993–1996), is a well-known figure in the field of nuclear power, nuclear safety and nuclear non-proliferation:

***

I came across an interesting article, “Russia’s energy clout doesn’t just come from oil and gas – it’s also a key nuclear supplier” on the increasing complications and uncertainties associated with the procurement of nuclear fuel for various countries which have opted for nuclear power. The military operations in Ukraine have made it very troublesome and uncertain, especially from the perspective of India. The article has not made any direct reference to the intractable issues associated with the so called sanctions on Russia; but the vast dependence on Russia for energy related supplies to so many countries, especially in nuclear power sector, makes the effort associated with such a sanction a humorous episode for many observers.
Some of the points highlighted in the article should be a matter of great concern to the advocates of nuclear power in India from the perspective of reliable import of nuclear fuel alone for the proposed increase in nuclear power capacity. As some kind of supplier or maker of nuclear fuel (even if it is very minor in volume), India does not seem to find a place at all at the global arena; so small seems to be our resources. In such a scenario how credible it will be to rely on import of nuclear fuel for most of the nuclear reactors proposed to be built in the country?
The Integrated Energy Policy of the erstwhile Planning Commission in 2006 had admitted that India is poorly endowed with Uranium, and that the known sources within the country can supply only about 10,000 MW of power capacity based on Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR). But the same policy had also controversially proposed to increase Nuclear power capacity, from about 4,800 MW in 2011 to about 63,000 MW in 2032, and to about 250,000 MW by 2050; evidently based on imported technologies. Whereas, there have been no indications since 2006 that such an ambitious policy plan to increase the nuclear capacity has been dropped, the question is whether India should continue to plan for more of nuclear power capacity despite the uncertainties, risks and costs associated with the new global nuclear fuel supply scenario, which is fast emerging as a global energy concern.
I remember the last occasion few years ago when we met last, how unhappy you were against the imported technologies for our nuclear power sector because of our own bitter past experiences. I am of the considered opinion that you, as an Ex-Chairperson of AERB and with considerable experience as a nuclear engineer in India’s nuclear power sector, are in a great position to advise the union govt. on the desirability of depending on the imported nuclear technology for the country. Many people like me are keen to know your views on this aspect of nuclear power.
May I hope that your own personal circumstances and health will allow you to share with us your considered opinion on this issue?
—
*Power & Climate Policy Analyst based in Sagara, Karnataka

Comments

Plastic burning in homes threatens food, water and air across Global South: Study

By Jag Jivan In a groundbreaking study spanning 26 countries across the Global South , researchers have uncovered the widespread and concerning practice of households burning plastic waste as a fuel for cooking, heating, and other domestic needs. The research, published in Nature Communications , reveals that this hazardous method of managing both waste and energy poverty is driven by systemic failures in municipal services and the unaffordability of clean alternatives, posing severe risks to human health and the environment.

From protest to proof: Why civil society must rethink environmental resistance

By Shankar Sharma* As concerned environmentalists and informed citizens, many of us share deep unease about the way environmental governance in our country is being managed—or mismanaged. Our complaints range across sectors and regions, and most of them are legitimate. Yet a hard question confronts us: are complaints, by themselves, effective? Experience suggests they are not.

Economic superpower’s social failure? Inequality, malnutrition and crisis of India's democracy

By Vikas Meshram India may be celebrated as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, but a closer look at who benefits from that growth tells a starkly different story. The recently released World Inequality Report 2026 lays bare a country sharply divided by wealth, privilege and power. According to the report, nearly 65 percent of India’s total wealth is owned by the richest 10 percent of its population, while the bottom half of the country controls barely 6.4 percent. The top one percent—around 14 million people—holds more than 40 percent, the highest concentration since 1961. Meanwhile, the female labour force participation rate is a dismal 15.7 percent.

Kolkata event marks 100 years since first Communist conference in India

By Harsh Thakor* A public assembly was held in Kolkata on December 24, 2025, to mark the centenary of the First Communist Conference in India , originally convened in Kanpur from December 26 to 28, 1925. The programme was organised by CPI (ML) New Democracy at Subodh Mallik Square on Lenin Sarani. According to the organisers, around 2,000 people attended the assembly.

From colonial mercantilism to Hindutva: New book on the making of power in Gujarat

By Rajiv Shah Professor Ghanshyam Shah ’s latest book, “ Caste-Class Hegemony and State Power: A Study of Gujarat Politics ”, published by Routledge , is penned by one of Gujarat ’s most respected chroniclers, drawing on decades of fieldwork in the state. It seeks to dissect how caste and class factors overlap to perpetuate the hegemony of upper strata in an ostensibly democratic polity. The book probes the dominance of two main political parties in Gujarat—the Indian National Congress and the BJP—arguing that both have sustained capitalist growth while reinforcing Brahmanic hierarchies.

Urgent need to study cause of large number of natural deaths in Gulf countries

By Venkatesh Nayak* According to data tabled in Parliament in April 2018, there are 87.76 lakh (8.77 million) Indians in six Gulf countries, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). While replying to an Unstarred Question (#6091) raised in the Lok Sabha, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs said, during the first half of this financial year alone (between April-September 2018), blue-collared Indian workers in these countries had remitted USD 33.47 Billion back home. Not much is known about the human cost of such earnings which swell up the country’s forex reserves quietly. My recent RTI intervention and research of proceedings in Parliament has revealed that between 2012 and mid-2018 more than 24,570 Indian Workers died in these Gulf countries. This works out to an average of more than 10 deaths per day. For every US$ 1 Billion they remitted to India during the same period there were at least 117 deaths of Indian Workers in Gulf ...

The greatest threat to our food system: The aggressive push for GM crops

By Bharat Dogra Thanks to the courageous resistance of several leading scientists who continue to speak the truth despite increasing pressures from the powerful GM crop and GM food lobby , the many-sided and in some contexts irreversible environmental and health impacts of GM foods and crops, as well as the highly disruptive effects of this technology on farmers, are widely known today.

History, culture and literature of Fatehpur, UP, from where Maulana Hasrat Mohani hailed

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* Maulana Hasrat Mohani was a member of the Constituent Assembly and an extremely important leader of our freedom movement. Born in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh, Hasrat Mohani's relationship with nearby district of Fatehpur is interesting and not explored much by biographers and historians. Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri has written a book on Maulana Hasrat Mohani and Fatehpur. The book is in Urdu. He has just come out with another important book, 'Hindi kee Pratham Rachna: Chandayan' authored by Mulla Daud Dalmai.' During my recent visit to Fatehpur town, I had an opportunity to meet Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri and recorded a conversation with him on issues of history, culture and literature of Fatehpur. Sharing this conversation here with you. Kindly click this link. --- *Human rights defender. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/vbrawat , X @freetohumanity, Skype @vbrawat

Transgender Bill testimony of Govt of India's ‘contempt’ for marginalized community

Counterview Desk India’s civil society network, National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM)* has said that the controversial transgender Bill, passed in the Rajya Sabha on November 26, which happened to be the 70th anniversary of the Indian Constitution, is a reflection on the way the Government of India looks at the marginalized community with utter contempt.

Search This Blog