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In absence of radiation safeguards, India’s contamination could be wider

Experts fear presence of more radioactive sources in Mayapuri, The Hindu, Mumbai, April 25, 2010 “…….So far eight victims have suffered in this month after exposure of radioactive material in Mayapuri. All of them are still in a critical condition with dangerously low platelet counts and depleted bone marrows.Besides this, thousands of people in the area now live in fear.AERB officials said, so far the joint team of NDMA, AERB and Bhabha Atomic Research Centre and Department of Atomic Energy crisis management has detected 11 sources of radioactive cobalt-60 from the Mayapuri scrap yard using ‘Tele-detectors’…….
Mayapuri is a junk metal capital of India and giant containers of scrap imported from various corners of the world arrive here without any check for radiation or any other lethal material at the Indian ports.

Radioactive cobalt—60 is a widely used radioisotope in industrial radiography, medical radiology, large food processing units and laboratories. The gamma rays emitted by it cause skin burns, cancer and death.

“The magnitude of risk to health depends on the quantity of cobalt—60, length of exposure, distance from the source and whether the substance is inhaled or ingested,” said a nuclear inspector of AERB adding that it takes nearly 5.27 years for it to lose radioactivity by even 50 per cent.

So far, the BARC, which has the waste disposal plant, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) and the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) or the NDMA had no control over such materials being shipped into India.

If India had a policy of checking the ports, the Mayapuri tragedy could have been averted, the officials said………… Nearly 4000 tonnes of junk metal enter India every day.The Hindu : News / National : Experts fear presence of more radioactive sources in Mayapuri

April 26, 2010 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | environment, India | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive