The Danger Inside: World’s Deafening Silence and India’s Uranium Black Market

Uranium is a natural radioactive element playing a twofold role. With its natural abundance greater than that of gold, silver, or mercury in the Earth’s crust, uranium has developed over the last six decades into a vital global energy resource that is used for military purposes as well as contributes in peaceful applications highlighting its dual significance in strategic and peaceful contexts. According to the data from the World      Nuclear Association, the world’s largest reserves of Uranium are found in Kazakhstan, Canada, and Namibia, who are the major Uranium producers and exporters of the world by 2022.

India, touted as one of the world’s largest nuclear powers, nineth largest Uranium producer, and is one of the largest Uranium importer (since the 1990s, specially from Kazakhstan, Canada, and Russia), finds itself entangled in the black-market trade of uranium. The sequence of uranium-related events in India reveals an unsettling story of smuggling, theft, and security failures over the years. These incidents demonstrate the ongoing vulnerabilities in the safeguarding of nuclear materials. These range from the alleged recovery of 2.5kg in Meghalaya in 1994, where smugglers claimed the scientist entrusted with 95kg failed to retrieve it, to the recent arrests in 2021 and 2022. The recent arrest on May 6, 2021, of two individuals with 7kg of natural uranium worth a staggering 2.9 million dollars is not an isolated incident but a stark reminder of a pervasive issue plaguing the nation’s nuclear capabilities. The incident of 2022 involved the illegal sale of a valuable item for Rs. 350 million per kg.

The given statistics of the consequential incidents have been extracted purely from Indian and international news outlets to avoid bias. The data lacks the exact quantity and the net worth of the confiscated radioactive or fissile material due to a number of reasons, such as inadequate reporting, a lack of particular information from the authorities, or ongoing investigations in which exact values have not been made public. Accurately determining the quantity and value of uranium that has been captured may also be difficult due to the covert operations and underground nature of the illicit trade. However, the source of the uranium that the smugglers obtained—where the important government research officers are involved—is a common element throughout all the incidents. This demonstrates the nuclear risk that the nation of India poses to the rest of the world and their own recklessness as a responsible nation.

Subsequent Incidents of Uranium Illicit Business in India

Table 1: Author’s Own Compilation (Sources – Indian National news Outlets, International News Outlets)

Just in 2021, India saw three such instances that all pointed to a growing illicit market for nuclear materials and, more concerningly, a deterioration in safety regulations in a nation that plays a major role in the world nuclear scene. Under the cover of India’s nuclear aspirations, the underbelly of the nuclear business has exposed a troubling reality.

The Indian history in black marketing of uranium depicts that the credibility of India’s safety and security measures for uranium reserves are under question. Consequently, it being considered a responsible nuclear weapon state is factually wrong. The events point to a massive gap in the system, not just a fissure, that not only allows criminals to openly sell nuclear materials on the illicit market but also proves the involvement of government officials. It also presents a disconcerting picture of India’s nuclear depots, highlighting flaws that legitimately raise doubts about the country’s capacity to shield its population from nuclear catastrophes. This highlights the urgent need to confront and fortify safety measures in the context of escalating demands.

The international community’s indifference, together with the deafening silence on the illicit uranium trade in one of the world’s nuclear giants, is quite worrisome. India’s illicit uranium supply chain is a ticking time bomb that threatens not just national security but also global security. However, the apathy of the international community towards addressing this issue head-on reveals a lot about how dedicated the states are to a world free of nuclear weapons. Because nuclear materials could fall into the wrong hands, the aforementioned incidents are those that have been reported, and there may be many more, though there is always the potential for devastating outcomes if nothing is done.

To fortify its security measures and ensure the integrity of its nuclear programme, India must take proactive and responsible action. Furthermore, the international community must unite against the growing threat posed by the illegal uranium trade in India and quit being so indifferent to it. Now is the moment to take immediate action before the dark market’s shadows engulf us all in a nuclear nightmare. The stakes are too high to stay blindfolded.