30 Oct 2012

IAEA inspecting leaky power plant

1:38 pm on 30 October 2012

The International Atomic Energy Agency is inspecting a nuclear plant in northern India after several radiation leaks there.

Earlier this year, more than 40 employees at the Rajasthan atomic power station were exposed to tritium radiation as a result of two separate leaks.

The federal government has invited a team from the UN agency to conduct a safety inspection of the plant, which supplies power to a large part of Rajasthan state.

The ABC reports the first incident occurred on 23 June when 38 people were exposed during maintenance work on a coolant channel at the plant.

Two received radiation doses equivalent to the annual permissible limit, but the ABC reports all those involved have since returned to work.

In a second incident in July, another four maintenance workers were exposed to tritium radiation while they were repairing a faulty seal on a pipe.