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EDITORIAL It is the turn of Calcutta now. Its name stands changed to Kolkata, whatever it means or implies. Earlier Dravidians forced-change of Madras to be called Tamil Nadu, the capital retaining the good old name. Subsequently, some overzealous bigots thought it not enough to fulfil their emotional goals. So they changed it from Madras to Chennai. People from south however are still called Madrasis even if they be Keralites or Telugus or Kannadas. Trivandrum became the capital of Kerala but its name somehow did not appeal to Keralites. They perhaps thought that it is too small for a State that is almost 100% literate. Obviously, the name of the capital needs to be elongated. So Thiruvanthapuram was born. It is quite another thing which of the two is easier to pronounce. One really does not know how it benefitted common man. But then India is a country of variety. It is common knowledge that financial capital of India Bombay was also re-christened as Mumbai. The difference between the two looks quite nominal but then there are politicians who have the capacity to stretch their imagination to what they call as items of 'mass appeal' sentiment (or exploitation of sentiments). It however augurs well for the country that Bombay is still Bombay and this particular item failed to fetch any gain at the husting. One really does not know why Baroda was changed to Vadodra and which way it is beneficial to the State or its people. Perhaps, some stalwarts derive sadistic pleasure by mixing up too many things to produce another thing and then go about claiming ....more |
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What the stars foretell? By Dr. Jitendra Singh Indigenous technology By N P Thakur & S K Lehria No more false promises By Prof S K Bhalla By Firoz Bakht Ahmed By Dr B K Fotedar Is nuclear terrorism By G V Joshi |
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EDITORIAL It is the turn of Calcutta now. Its name stands changed to Kolkata, whatever it means or implies. Earlier Dravidians forced-change of Madras to be called Tamil Nadu, the capital retaining the good old name. Subsequently, some overzealous bigots thought it not enough to fulfil their emotional goals. So they changed it from Madras to Chennai. People from south however are still called Madrasis even if they be Keralites or Telugus or Kannadas. Trivandrum became the capital of Kerala but its name somehow did not appeal to Keralites. They perhaps thought that it is too small for a State that is almost 100% literate. Obviously, the name of the capital needs to be elongated. So Thiruvanthapuram was born. It is quite another thing which of the two is easier to pronounce. One really does not know how it benefitted common man. But then India is a country of variety. It is common knowledge that financial capital of India Bombay was also re-christened as Mumbai. The difference between the two looks quite nominal but then there are politicians who have the capacity to stretch their imagination to what they call as items of 'mass appeal' sentiment (or exploitation of sentiments). It however augurs well for the country that Bombay is still Bombay and this particular item failed to fetch any gain at the husting. One really does not know why Baroda was changed to Vadodra and which way it is beneficial to the State or its people. Perhaps, some stalwarts derive sadistic pleasure by mixing up too many things to produce another thing and then go about claiming credit for such innovation. Delhi in fact is Dilli. Dilli dil-walon-ki. New Delhi is the product of colonial rule. No wonder all roads had names of their viceroys or kings. British people are known for their administrative skills. That explains why Union Jack was visible in all the continents. They still hold the view, ''The king is dead: Long live kingdom''. That is why our politicians lost no time in changing the names of the roads carrying British names. But New Delhi and Delhi remains untampered. Since all metropolis have changed their nomenclatures, it is just as well Dilli's pristine glory is restored. As far as common man is concerned they still call it Dilli. Or perhaps some other beautiful name can be conceived. Changing name is not the monopoly of politicians or the ruling clan or the zealots though. Even individuals opt for it as they grow. They realise that a good name is more acceptable than those things called Ram Piyari or Pyare Lal. Saroj Devi or Jagat Ram. Modern generation just won't accept it. As they gain puberty, there is the wisdom dawning on them of not being called Daulat Ram or Soma Devi. No wonder they apply for change of name to give it a modern look. In fact, there is a book having indexed all possible names in alphabetic order. When Priyanka gave birth to the baby boy, all sycophants reached her mother Sonia with booklets and names for the offspring of Gandhi-Nehru clan, perhaps thinking him to be heir-apparent. After all Priyanka is mentioned as Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. So name does have a role and singnificance. Within our State, the city created by Raja Jamboo Lochan also has undergone some transformation. From Jamboo, it began to be spelt as Jamu and then there was inclusion of another 'm' to make it Jammu. And for the new generation, it is apt to remind that Anantnag is indeed Islamabad. Now Kolkata again. Well, it has happened during the spell of 23 year long leftist-rule. A long standing demand and dream fulfilled. CPI (M) can go to the husting in just a few months time claiming all credit for this Kolkata business. There is at least one thing on the credit side. Rest all is debt. Slums, penury, muck and sheet, lawlessness, host to large number of Bangladeshis. There is however one more claim. They loudly say that they are the best brand of secularists. All others are communalists. So they too have changed from Communists to Secularists, particularly after Calcutta becomes Kolkata. Keep it up Congressmen. They have changed all the pro-BJP names of roads and places in Rajkot to pro-Congress names soon-after gaining control of Rajkot Corporation ! |
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What the
stars foretell? By Dr. Jitendra Singh "Atal Behari Vajpayee is going to consolidate his position in the year to come. Sonia Gandhi is going to pass through a bad phase. Kashmir situation is going to show a visible improvement. And, India is going to emerge stronger in the international communion." These are, in brief, some of the commonest predictions made for the year 2001 by most of the country's best known astrologers including Lachhman Das Madan, Bejan Daruwala and Saurabh Kwatra. Incidentally, or shall we say ironically, most of the political predictions made at the advent of New Year by the country's leading astrologers are not very different from the politial speculations made by a majority of media commentators and press columnists including this humble scribe. The question that naturally follows is "Are the astrologers picking up a cue from the press-writings or are the press-writers basing their opinions on astrological prophesies?" The answer to this question will determine whether, in the final reckoning, the nation should rely upon its media-minded astrologers or its astrology-minded media-persons? One only wishes that the two are not found to be hand-in-glove with each other! In the present age of "fixing" and "fixers", when the cricket matches are "fixed", the elections are "fixed" and now even the Beauty Contests are said to be "fixed", what if tomorrow the revelation surfaces that the political predictions by the country's astrologers were also "fixed" or "planted" with the clandestine objective of making or unmaking the future prospects of certain political big-wigs? Be that as it may, the practice of publishing regular forecast columns in newspapers and magazines has been a subject of controversy for several years. There have been instances where certain newspapers decided to discontinue the forecast column only to reintroduce it again on purely market considerations. This implies that publication of forecast column in the Sunday edition of most of the newspapers as also in the daily edition of some newspapers carries the potential of attracting a larger number of readers thus providing a boost in the circulation of these newspapers. Needless to add, the readers get the kind of newspapers they deserve just as people get the kind of Government they deserve. The other question related to the subject is whether the journalistic ethics permit such unscrupulous marketing of highly generalised, vague, ambiguous and unaccounted prophesies aimed at hooking the gullible populace? Meanwhile, the common man only wishes that the widely published predictions for the year 2001 actually prove right --- that the Vajpayee Government becomes more stable, India emerges stronger and Kashmir returns to peace. True or false, the astrological predictions made for India in 2001 incidentally also reflect the common man's incessant yearning for an unrequited dream as also the common man's incessant fear of the dream eluding him. Poet articulates Umapathy's aspiration and his apprehension, "Tumhen Yakeen Ke Yeh Khwaab Haqeeqat Ho Jaayenge, Aur Mujhe Gumaan Ke Meri Haqeeqat Khwaab Hue Jaati Hai!"
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No more false promises By Prof S K Bhalla The other day the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission ruled that the students can seek damages from Institutions which fail to impart education on the lines promised at the time of admission. This ruling is likely to open floodgates for litigation against Colleges and Universities for 'negligence' or 'deficiency' which our educational leaders of Colleges and Universities do not have the nerve to admit as it affects their superficially built public image. The Commission in its landmark order ruled 'Imparting of education by an educational institution falls within the ambit of service as defined in Consumer Protection Act." It was maintained that the students pay fees for education: "If there is no rendering of service, question of payment of fees would not arise." Coming home to our J&K State where education is being imparted with a peripheral vision it can be safely stated that many of our Colleges and some Departments of Universities are sans infrastructure, suitable faculty and what may be termed as educational technology. A sub-standard stuff is being sold in broad daylight while extravagent statements are reported day in and day out. A close study of various Information Bulletins/Prospectuses/Booklets issued by the College and University authorities would reveal to a discerning person that the facts are misrepresented amounting to unfair trade and practice. Examples can be cited of Information Bulletin issued by Govt. SPMR College of Commerce, Jammu for BBA Course regarding infrastructural facilities/the Co-Curricular Activities and Prospectus 2000-2001 of Govt. College for Women Gandhi Nagar, Jammu supplied to admission seekers regarding the College bus and tutorials undertaken as per UGC norms. The situation is no better in other private institutions who have earned notoriety for purveying the wrong information to exploit the hapless students whether they are providing Computer Education or B.Ed training. It is our good luck that neither our general masses nor our youth are that enlightened and concerned about education to seek damages from the concerned. Those who understand the issues at stake are not organised properly to go in for redressal of their genuine grievance like those twelve (12) student whose complaint was responsible for the Commission's decision. The Commission went to the extent of ordering the College authorities to refund rupees 6 lakhs with 12 percent annual interest against admission expenses. A fine of rupees 10000/- was also slapped on the College. These are definitely unusual happenings in the world of education and a matter of deep concern. The root cause of the malady lies in throwing to winds all academic ethics which is a debatable issue as also squeezing whatsoever available money from the students who have now been reduced to guinea-pigs at the hand of Commercial Operators donning the mask of educationists and paving the way for educational hell with their apparently pious intentions. |
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By Firoz Bakht Ahmed Capitals iftar parties are falling into a rut. Mulayam Singh was first one to break the ice this year! That Ramzan is the party time is the impression created in most minds when one sees umpteen stalls seeling snacks, kebabs, sevaiyans, halim, pakodas etc. Sure, iftar is the time to savour all these delicacies a rozedar awaits impatiently having abstained from eating and drinking for the whole day There are even bigger iftar stalls selling political ideology to be used as vote catching net during an election. Almost all the hawks, big and small, jump in the bandwagon throwing iftar parties trying to portray their special love and affection for the Muslim community. What is very interesting is that most of the invitees and the invited are non-Muslims. There may be a handful of Muslims invited. But left out are those who devotedly observe the fast. It is observed that a token representation from old Delhi and senior bureaucrats and politicians are invited to mingle next to beautifully laid-out sophisticated buffets. The idea is perhaps to show that politicians are one with the minority community. And, of course the one indicator of communal harmony is that Mughal cuisine! Iftar is technically the meal with which fasting ends. Therefore, without a fast their is no iftar. Iftar tokenism is indulged not only by those who see Muslim minority as a bunch of illiterate and ghettoised electorates who would be pleased with these iftar parties only to be their potential vote-bank! There are those also throwing iftar to assuage the animosity they feel politically toward the community. The iftar at the Hyderabad House by the Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee seems to implore the Muslim community to sweep clean the Babri Masjid debris and its aftermath. It is believed that these iftar parties had began some time in 1975 after the Turkman Gate riots during the Emergency. Late Inder Mohan, the PUCL activist used to tell me that in order to appease the angry Muslims of Delhi. Late Indira Gandhi, at the behest of Hemavati Nandan Bahuguna, started the iftar parties. In fact, it was from this day onwards that the tradition of iftar diplomacy began. In first of these iftar parties, people invited included a selective gathering of the foreign ambassadors and diplomats, top politicians, celebrities from the fields of media, sports, film and business. Mrs. Gandhi's plea was, and rightly so, that such parties provide an opportunity to mix with the public and it for a festive cause. She believed that these iftars create an air of better understanding between the people of various communities and that they are truly secular. Iftar dinner parties began in Delhi's political circus when Mrs. Gandhi was wooing Muslims. But now they have become mandatory especially for the ruling party. Yeah, iftar, like all else in the land of Mercedes, Fords Cielos and cellular wielding cronies, has undergone metamorphosis over the years. In today's iftars we find that tradition has given way to designer decorations and the mian bhais of Delhi's glitterati! The food too has been adapted to various tastes with Punjabi palate being in the driver's seat---- Amritsari fish amidst sheermal and Mutton Qorma. For the culinarily challenged, it is time to know the joys of palate. But, as is perhaps evident from the current trend of political iftars, the translation seems to be snowballing from one iftar party to another. After Congress, every party arranged political iftars "religiously". Basically roza is a religious ritual and there are certain tenets to be followed as far as roza iftar is concerned. Though no dishes like the new at the political iftars are specified, the real iftar activity is rather simple as a wholesome meal consisting of kachalu (fruit Mixture), pakodas, dates, etc. Since Islam believes in sharing, it is recommended that iftar be shared with the members of the family, friends and more so with the not-so-privileged. The Ministerial iftars are no more than a mockery of ramzan. At times such politicization appears to be quite loathsome. The purpose of iftar congregation basically is to serve food to the downtrodden and the deprived. By indulging in iftar diplomacy, the Politicins make a mockery of this otherwise very solemn and dignified rite. In one of the iftar parties thrown by a politicians party which has no love lost for the Muslims, last year at Ashoka Road in the capital, the moment the time of breaking the fast approached, thousands of people fell on the eatables and within seconds there was noting for the poor rozedar (one who fasts). As that was not sufficient, to the chagrin of the Party President, there was complete lack of civic sense. Once the feasting was over, it appeared that the place was trampled over by animals. Lot of wheeling and dealing takes places in these iftars of diplomacy. some fundamentalists accuse that Muslims are being appeared. Fasting in one form or the other, exists in every religion of the world. They wonder why the fast festivity of other religions is not taken seriously. Mufti Mukarram Ahmed, the Inam of the Sahi Fatehpuri Masjid of Delhi States that iftar is a thoroughly religious and personal activity and that it should not be interfered with in a political manner. But Maulana Jemeel Ilyasi is of the view that such iftar are socially viable as people belonging to various backgrounds warm-heartedly feast with one another. At least for meeting certain political ends, these iftars are quite useful. At these iftars a class of prominent personalities drawn from various walks of life representing religion, politics and the intelligentsia, are seen discussing not the relevance of fasting but the latest political trends. A couple of years ago, Hyderabad House was booked for HD Deve Gowda's first iftar party as the Prime Minister. Preparations began well in advance as a menu of standard iftar dishes was prepared. But Mr. Gowda's men struck down a few non-vegetarian items to include the humble farmer's favourites-- sambar, dosa and bisi beli bhat. Well, to tell you the secret, democracy triumphed over sheermal! On the day of the iftar, as Gowda welcomed his 700 -strong gathering a combined aroma of uttapam and seekh kebabs arose from the kitchen puzzling the old timers. In fact, that served as the appetizer. Even haleem was there in pure Hyderabadi style. Some regular iftar buffs eagerly wait for this holy month and the most sought-after iftar invitations for them are those by the President, Prime Minister, Defence Minister, Railway Minister, HRD Minister and the Home Minister. Various approaches and resources are found so that an invitation is pocketed. The presence of certain political celebrities becomes the barometer of the popularity of certain minister. Besides, for the regular iftar buff, it is the most handy opportunity to score over his opponents that he is man of connections to be present there. For the last couple of years, iftar session is considered a run away success in the Congress Party where Sonia Gandhi spends more time. Once during the tenure of P V Narasimha Rao as the Prime Minister when Sonia attended the iftar dinner of Arjun Singh for 15 minutes, it was considered a tatcial victory for his camp. But their spirits dampened when Sonia spent 30 minutes at the iftar of Mr. Roa. Similar is the case in the BJP. Their iftar success is measured when Atal Behari Vajpayee and Advani attend them. Besides, in Mumbai, Bala Sahib Thackeray commands the same respect in his circles as Sonia in Congress. Mufti Makarran Ahmed, Imam
of the Shahi Fatehpuri Masjid, Delhi and a pious rozedar,
hates the politicization of iftar and points out that
more than 90 per cent people at such iftars do and want
that this must stop. Truly, as Ramzan, the ninth month
according to the Islamic calendar, happens to be the most
pious month as it was during this month that the holy
Quran was revealed to the last Prophet, Hazarat Mohammed.
There is no room in it for lies, hypocrisy and politics.
There can be other political dinners: the pious iftars
ought to be spared. |
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By Dr B K Fotedar Plastics have proved a menace throughout the globe. It has become piled up in streets, lanes, outside dwelling places, fruit markets and finally near the banks of water bodies. Its everyday use has become so common that without it every family member in a family feels that something very important is missing and without which they also feel that they can't go. Rather it has become a part and parcel of our life. Previously, the people used to take utensils to the market to contain milk, curds, ghee or other food stuffs. But the plastic bags now have become so common that we can't think of any other better alternative to replace them. You will hardly find any house where there is no plastic. If we keenly think about these plastics that we use frequently for carriage of household stuffs, we will soon start realising that it would do us no good in the long run, but we will invite a hell of diseases hovering over us in the near future. The union government notified the recycled plastic manufacture and usage rules 1999 in September. They were immediately supposed to do away with the plastics, but nothing substantial has so far been done. It appears that rules have fallen flat. The Government of Sikkim had banned plastic bags way back in 1998 after the death of 27 people in a landslide caused by dumping plastic bags. Other states also have come up with their own regulations and rules to restrict or ban the use of plastics and plastic bags. These include Goa and Maharashtra. Similarly H P Government has introduced a ban on plastic bags, but hidden trades still continue and plastic bags choke many upstreams on their way causing floods. The plastic menace does not seem to have ended at all. Actually plethora of laws and regulations do not go into ensuring a clean environment. The rules are without a rationale. It was long back that Ministry of Environment and Forests had set up a National Plastic Waste Management Task Force (NPWMTF) to formulate a strategy and action programme for the management of plastic waste. The task force was chaired by the Central Pollution Control Board and had representatives from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Chamber of Commerce and the plastic industry. No NGO from the States were invited to participate. The government made its rules supposedly, on the basis of recommendations of the Task Force. The Central Government notification included rules on two important issues besides others :- * The minimum thickness of all carry bags made of virgin or recycled plastic bags will have to be more than 20 microns and * No vendor shall use carry bags or containers made of recycled plastics for storing, dispensing or packaging of foodstuffs. As far as 20 micron size of plastics is concerned the PCB says that it is actually the suggestion made by Task Force, but some argue that there is no such a thing existing in the report of Task Force. The Central Government also has no particular logic for creating this 20 micron thickness limit. One of the professors of School of Environmental Sciences in the Jawahar Lal Nehru University, New Delhi says ''It cannot be understood how the Union Government's ban on plastic bags with thickness less than 20 microns will help in bringing down the amount of plastic in the environment''. It is now quite understandable that plastic bags more than 20 micron size are ultimately going to produce more plastic. Greater thickness means more amount of plastic to the environment. Infact plastic bags should be completely banned. Even if the thickness is increased, the throw away tendency of these bags will persist. The word plastic encompasses a wide range of materials that are capable of being moulded without a permanent change in their chemical structure. Chemical units (monomers) joined together form a string called polymers Polymers are, therefore, so many e.g. PVC, polymide (Nylon), Polyethylene, commonly used for making a variety of plastic products. Plastic bags are nothing but the polymer polyethylene. Polyethylene combined with chemical softners and other additives can be modified into high density polythene or linear low density polythene, to produce different types of plastic bags and other materials like cans and bottles. They are non-biodegradable. And the bags can be made by using only virgin plastic or by mixing used plastic in different proportions. The used plastic may have been recycled just once or multiple times. But every time of recycling, it loses some of its characteristics and toxins are released in the process of recycling. Plastic waste comprises 1-4 percent of the total 80,000 tonnes of Municipal solid waste generated every year in India in terms of weight. This works out to 800-3200 tonnes of plastic each day. 60 percent of plastic waste gets recycled and the rest remains on the streets or dumps, choking open drains and animals, and in extreme cases it causes landslides such as one in Sikkim. One more important thing is that plastic recycle trade is done in unregulated manner. Big players of polymer Industry are putting the plastic goods on run and making huge profits without caring its ill effects on the general masses. The Task Force estimated that post consumer plastic waste will reach to 8 million tonnes per day in 2006-2007 if the increase in the plastic consumption continues. One of the unfortunate things happening in India is that instead of curtailing use of plastics Delhi Government has set up a new market At a time when many countries worldwide are phasing out use of plastics or cracking down on its trade, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has inaugurated a Poly vinyl chloride (PVC) market at Tigri Kalan village in West Delhi, spread over 10 hectares of land. The market is to provide trading grounds to those affected in the infamous fire at Jwalapuri in West Delhi. The inauguration if the market epitomises government failure in understanding toxics and the lack of political will for doing something about it. Knowing the trade is a dirtyone, but Delhi government does not wish to face the problem if it disallows this sort of trade. The establishment of new market for PVC shows government apathy towards public health and environmental safety. Rather than promoting the use of plastics, particularly the PVC, the government should think in terms of phasing out use of non-biodegradable commodity. It is a already being phased out in countries such as Austria and Switzerland. The larger goal of entire exercise of reducing plastic should not be forgotten. It is too early to replace the present non-biodegradable plastic to biodegradable plastic, but till then at least their use in the domestic sector for carriage of foodstuffs may be stopped with concerted effort and strong will.
Is nuclear terrorism possible in India ? By G V Joshi We read about bomb explosions in newspapers like the ones which took place in Mumbai in December 1993 or in trains, markets and other spots of that kind. Some of us have experienced bombs exploding in our neighbourhood and a few families may have lost their near and dear ones in such bomb blasts. We also read about thefts of uranium and plutonium from uranium mines and plutonium making plants in the Western countries as well as India. In an age of nuclear energy and fissile fuels, the unwelcome prospects of homemade nuclear bombs may be closer than we may presume. Is it possible for a terrorist to make a brief-case size atomic bomb, and explode it in a public place or under a building housing many offices? The answer is both no and yes. According to an atomic industry official, it would be a lot easier to make even a very large conventional bomb using traditional explosives like TNT or RDX than the crudest type of nuclear explosives. America has some of the most stringent restrictions and safeguards for the military and civilian transport or export of fissionable fuels. Yet the US Government admitted losing over 4 tonnes of the fissile material during the 1960s and the 70s. In 1965 a company that manufactures enriched uranium for nuclear reactors in the US reported to the authorities that it could not account for over 100-kg of weapon grade uranium. This was enough to make a few atom bombs. The loss had accumulated over a period of years. The missing material was presumed to be mixed with scrap and lost. An American nuclear weapons plant located in Savanna, Georgie, could not account for the disappearance of enough plutonium to make a dozen bombs the size of those dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. A few years later city officials in Orlando, Florida, USA received a letter stating that unless the sender were paid a million dollars, he would detonate a nuclear device in the centre of the city. A diagram of the supposed device accompanied the note. An expert who looked at it said that it was a perfectly feasible design. Orlando is a very busy city with thousands of tourists coming to visit the Disneytown and film studios. The threat turned out to be a hoax. It does not require a highly-trained nuclear physicist to make an atom bomb. Any inventive individual or a group with a basic understanding of how a nuclear bomb works and who can make the kind of equipment necessary could build a crude nuclear bomb. The destructive capacity of the bomb will depend upon the maker, his equipment and materials. Of the materials in use or planned for use in nuclear power plants, only three, Plutonium-239, highly enriched or weapon grade uranium (that is Uranium composed of 90 per cent or more of Uranium-235) and Uranium-233, are needed for making a nuclear weapon. A number of nuclear power plants are operating in India. A few plant are under construction. There are a few facilities that serve them. Indian nuclear power plants use mostly natural uranium mined at jadugoda in Bihar. Light water reactors like the one at Tarapur plant use enriched uranium (2-4 per cent), obtained from the US to start with and subsequently imported from France. Plutonium made in Indian plants using natural uranium is used in breeder reactor at Kalpakkam near Chennai (Madras). Kamini, the nuclear reactor at Kalapakkam uses Uranium-233 (made from Thorium-232) as a fuel. Designing the bomb calls for some specific technical information, but most of it is available in scientific magazines and journals. Someone wanting to make a nuclear weapon today would find more useful data available to him than the designers of the first bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. It is very difficult to make enriched uranium-reactor grade or weapon grade-from natural uranium, but with about 10 kg of plutonium a terrorist group could assemble a nuclear weapon with a force from 100 to 20,000 tonnes of high explosives. Detonated at the base of a skyscraper like the ones in Nariman Point in Mumbai or Connought Place in New Delhi, it could destroy the building and its surroundings with all of their occupants. In 1976, a university student in the US designed a plutonium bomb equal to 8,500 tonnes of TNT with the help of textbooks and published research papers. In some ways it was similar to the bomb dropped on Nagasaki. In some ways amateur bomb was even better. His findings made international news. A few pages from his report were withheld from public. French, Italian, Australian and Israel newspapers evinced keen interest. The only material hard to get is plutonium or weapon grade uranium. This would have to be diverted or stolen from the facilities making them. Of those, plutonium is the most likely item for thefts. It is a by-product of reactors. Besides its potential as a bomb material, plutonium is tremendously deadly by itself. On a scale of lethal doses, it is at least 20,000 times more toxic than cobra poison or potassium cyanide and 1,000 times mote toxic than nerve gas. No one can safely absorb more than one ten-millionth of a gram in his lifetime, and inhale in a dust a quantity no larger than a pinhead. Within a few days it will cause death from lesions in lungs. Lesser doeses will result in cancer over a long period of time. Instead of making a bomb, a terrorist may make a dispersal bomb that would shower plutonium dust over a crowded area like a cricket stadium. A few grams may be dropped in the central air conditioning system of an office building. There are many fanatics dedicated to some potential goal. Scientific know-how for the construction of a crude device is now widely distributed. The problem is to obtain plutonium or weapon grade uranium. Nuclear theft has arrived. Six known thefts in Russia have been intercepted abroad. Once they have the material, terrorists have the bomb. It takes only a coca-cola canfull of weapon grade uranium or plutonium. In November 1994, USA quitely shifted nearly 2.5 tonnes of fissile material and associated equipment from Kazakistan to its nuclear material factory for further processing into enriched uranium for power plants. But a lot of material still appears to be left. Tass news agency from Moscow has reported that custom authorities in Uzbekistan confiscated a truck carrying highly radioactive material to our Western neighbour in the last week of March 2000. The material packed in lead lined boxes was addressed to a businessman in Quetta. The truck owner was told that the material was steel scrap. He carried a certificate saying that there was no radioactive material in the boxes. The truck which came from Kazakistan was sent back. Uranium worth a fortune and a huge quantity of explosives were recovered from a house in Mithanpura locality in Muzaffarpur, Bihar some years ago. Laboratory tests at Department of Atomic Energy's Bhaba Atomic Research Centre (BARC) at Jadugoda found that the material seized by the Muzaffarpur police did not contain any uranium or its compound. Many other similar thefts of nuclear material have been reported. On detailed analysis, no uranium was found. Even the tightest security measures of the First World cannot guarantee our safety. In the late 1980s, a Belgian nuclear plant deliberately identified plutonium as low-grade waste, allowing it to be resold and shipped to a second party. The customers were Libya and Pakistan. For a little more money some Belgian nuclear technicials sold enough ''low-risk'' plutonium to Muammar Qaddafi of Libya, and the Pakistani nuclear weapons project to manufacture seventy Hiroshima-sized bombs. A homemade nuclear bomb three times more mpowerful than the Hiroshima blast requires as little as a 2-kg of high-grade plutonium. A crude device small enough to fit in a suitcase could be smuggled to its target. Once positioned, a terrorist group of a few hundred members could blackmail an entire continent to obtain military or political concessions. Finally, one does not even need to use an atomic bomb to be a nuclear terrorist. If a zealous terrorist band seizes one of civilian reactors, they can threaten to trigger a reactor meltdown with only a few cases of well-placed dynamite. The cloud issuing from the cauldron of a fully exposed meltdown could send a pall of radiation over most of the country. The prevailing wind patterns in India during the days of South West monsoon during a reactor meltdown along West Coast would form a radioactive cloud of dust extending over North India. It is, therefore, very
necessary to keep a very strict watch and exercise
extremely tight security over the movement of plutonium,
enriched or weapon grade uranium from one place to
another to prevent its theft. |
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