India to Install Eight Radiation Detection Equipment

Eight border crossings along India's borders with Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Nepal will soon be equipped with radiation detection equipment (RDE) to monitor the trafficking of radioactive materials for possible use in the manufacture of nuclear devices, Indian media report.

The RDE will be set up at the land ports and Integrated Check Posts (ICPs) of Attari (on the border with Pakistan), Petrapole, Agartala, Dawki and Sutarkandi (all on the border with Bangladesh), Raxaul and Jogbani (in Nepal) and Moreh (in Myanmar).

A development official told Indian media that the government has awarded a work order for the supply, installation and maintenance of RDE at eight operational ICPs under a contract signed last year. The vendor will deliver the equipment and complete the installation process soon.

The RDE was established by the central government to put an end to the illegal trafficking of radioactive materials across international borders. It is well known that there is a lot of cross-border movement of people and goods in the eight ICPs.

According to another official, any instance of radioactive material smuggling could pose a significant challenge for India's security forces as it has the potential to be exploited for the creation of nuclear or radiological dispersal devices.

The RDE are installed in drive-through monitoring stations that keep eye on trucks and the goods they carry.

Although footfall through the Attari ICP (Indo-Pak border) has decreased significantly due to the recent thaw in relations with Pakistan, footfall through other ICPs is still significant.

The RDE could be used by the security departments at the ICPs to monitor cross-border freight traffic.

"The RDE is equipped to trigger separate gamma and neutron radiation alarms and generate video images of suspicious objects," the official said.

Moreover, it will have the ability to differentiate between distinct nuclear material and naturally occurring radiation present in ceramics or fertilizers, as well as high-energy gamma isotopes, which are a distinguishing feature of recycled uranium.

The installation of the RDE is believed to have involved technical assistance from a number of international agencies.

The tax loss to the Indian government due to illicit trade has increased by 163 per cent to ₹1,17,000 crore in 2019-20. Moreover, the report titled 'Illicit Markets: A Threat to National Interest' states that India's illicit market, spread across five key industries, has cost India 3 million jobs. The government has suffered a loss of $7 billion in 2019-20 due to the counterfeit market.

According to the World Economic Forum, the global illicit market drains $ 2.2 trillion from the global economy, taking over 3% of the global GDP. Perversely, the awareness of the ravaging effects of illicit trade often sparks nationalistic impulses and insular responses.

The global illicit market drains $2.2 trillion from the global economy, equivalent to over 3% of global GDP, according to the World Economic Forum. Perversely, awareness of the devastating impact of illicit trade often leads to nationalistic impulses and insular responses.

Ironically, these responses end up working in the traffickers' favour: the more states try to erect barriers to the flow of illicit goods, services, and labour, the more the traffickers can profit from their trade.

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India to Install Radiation Detection Equipment at Eight Border Crossings