The Man With A Vision – Padma Vibhushan Dr. Anil Kakodkar

We the students of Mushtifund Aryaan Higher Secondary School , feel privileged to be a part of this prestigious Institute. It has provided us with opportunities which many students would only dream of!
On 11th November 2019, we were blessed with one such opportunity. Our school was visited by two eminent personalities, Padma Vibhushan Dr. Anil Kakodkar and Prof. G.V. Prabhugainkar. We all know the work of Dr. Kakodkar in the field of Nuclear physics and as a mechanical engineer. He headed the Atomic Energy Commission of India as its Chairman and also served as the Director of BARC from 1996 – 2000. Prof. Prabhugaonkar on the other hand is a visiting faculty at IIT Goa and an expert in Material Science and Technology. Our Director, Mr. Vyankatesh Prabhudesai warmly greeted our guests and Dr. Ketan Sardessai ( Faculty Member, MAHSS ) formally introduced to the students, Dr. Anil Kakodkar.

Dr. Kakodkar, started off the interactive session by explaining to the eager students, the concept of generating electricity by Nuclear Power Plants using the energy produced by Nuclear reactions and conventional power plants where fossil fuels are used. It was indeed very intriguing to understand the entire process. He also spoke about the construction of nuclear power plants and the precautions to be taken in the process. The awe struck students were informed about the World’s longest running nuclear reactor, the 220 MW Nuclear reactor at Kaiga in Karnataka. It completed a continuous run of 941 run without a shutdown!

He explained the Nuclear fission, where heavy nucleus is split , and nuclear fusion, where lighter nuclei fuse together. He also gave us an insight into the developments and research going on worldwide to facilitate the fusion reaction, which produces more energy and uses more common elements, as compared to the fission reaction. But, due to the lack of methods available to handle such high temperatures, fusion concept to generate nuclear energy is not used in India.

We were intrigued to know about the solar flares as an example of the instability of fission reactions which are difficult to control and handle. The prospects of nuclear energy fascinated us, as being cheaper than solar energy. But, in India, nuclear energy accounts for only 2 % of the total energy produced by the various sources. For the rest of the world, it stand at 11%.

The interaction was further energized by the question and answer session which entirely coordinated by our Director, Mr. Vyankatesh Prabhudesai and both the students and faculty members participated in the same. When asked about the very low nuclear energy supply in India, Dr. Kakodkar replied that India does not possess much of Uranium reserves and has to import it from other countries. India has a huge reserve of Thorium which is not used as much as Uranium.

A student was curious to know about sustainability of nuclear energy and what would happen if nuclear elements run out. It was highlighted that the way it is going, nuclear elements will run out much after other sources of energy. Dr. Kakodkar provided a deeper view to the field of nuclear energy and also explained India’s strong stand for complete Global nuclear disagreement. But, weapons as a deterrent to defend itself.

This interesting session was followed by yet another insightful brief talk by Prof. Prabhugaonkar who started off by giving us an example of a piece of paper, if rolled over several times, turns into a stronger material. We were introduced to the importance of the material science by this simple example and the kind of research being done in this field.

He further motivated us to work hard towards realizing our dream of getting into an IIT. He also enlightened the students by eagerly answering their queries regarding the opportunities awaiting at IIT…

It was an enriching and indeed an inspiring session for all the students which made us more determined and lifted our spirits. We are extremely grateful to our Director , VPD Sir, for providing us with such a wonderful opportunity!

– Prepared by Vedantt Koul, Student of STD XI.