UPSC Prelims 2018 · Question 33 of 99

UPSC Prelims 2018 question on IAEA Additional Protocol

In the Indian context, what is the implication of ratifying the 'Additional Protocol' with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)?

  1. The civilian nuclear reactors come under IAEA safeguards.
  2. The military nuclear installations come under the inspection of IAEA.
  3. The country will have the privilege to buy uranium from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
  4. The country automatically becomes a member of the NSG.
Show answer

Answer: A. The civilian nuclear reactors come under IAEA safeguards.

Analysis

Ratifying the Additional Protocol brings civilian reactors under IAEA safeguards, so the answer is (a).

India ratified the Additional Protocol as a commitment given under the India and United States nuclear deal, granting the International Atomic Energy Agency greater ease in monitoring India's civilian atomic programme. The IAEA approved an additional protocol to India's safeguards agreement in March 2009, following a pact reached the previous year to place civilian nuclear facilities under IAEA safeguards. That earlier agreement had paved the way for the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group to grant India a specific waiver for commercial relations in the civilian atomic field.

Option (b) fails because military installations stay outside the arrangement, which is the entire point of the civilian and military separation plan. Options (c) and (d) confuse the IAEA with the NSG, which are separate bodies.

Source

The Hindu articles on India and the Additional Protocol and on IAEA access to India's facilities.

How to crack it

Keep the IAEA and the NSG in separate mental boxes, since the IAEA inspects and safeguards while the NSG controls trade. Half the distractors in Indian nuclear diplomacy questions work by attributing one body's function to the other. Ask which body the stem names, then discard every option describing the other body's job.

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