India is probing radiation contamination among workers of one of its premier nuclear power plant installation at Kaiga in Karnataka.
Four workers were hospitalised and close to 50 others treated at the power plant after drinking water contaminated with radioactive tritium. The contamination of the drinking water source — a cooler — was described as 'an act of mischief' by the chairman and managing director of the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) S. K. Jain. NPCIL operates the plant.
An expert committee at NPCIL has launched a probe to find out how a drinking water cooler in the high-security plant was contaminated. Nuclear scientists are among those on the committee.
A parallel probe by the state government was also on. A criminal investigation was launched after Atomic Energy Commission chairperson Anil Kakodkar said someone had 'deliberately' put the tritium used in nuclear reactors in the water cooler. He called it a serious operating procedural lapse.
Internal sabotage is being named as the reason behind the radioactive contamination of water. However, there was no radiation leak in the area, plant authorities said.
In New Delhi, Minister of State for Atomic Energy Prithviraj Chavan hinted that a 'disgruntled' worker might be behind the act.
