Kakodkar urges diplomatic community to work towards India becoming NSG member

Anil Kakodkar, member, Atomic Energy Commission, during a conference at IIT-Madras on Thursday, October 8, 2026.  | Photo Credit: Johan Sathyadas J

Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) member Anil Kakodkar on Thursday called upon the country’s diplomatic community to work towards India becoming a member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), even though the country was benefitting only from a waiver. He was speaking at an international conference ‘Building India’s Nuclear Ecosystem -- Policy, Technology & Industry’ organised by the Indian Institute of Technology - Madras (IIT-M) and the Deccan Centre for International Relations (DCIR) in Chennai.

“We get a lot of uranium now from the international market, thanks to the NSG waiver. But, it is only a waiver. It is not a membership. That waiver can be turned around without much difficulty. I request all those, who are engaged in diplomacy, to make sure that we get a membership of the NSG because that is what will de-risk the availability of uranium, which is a major risk factor in building such a large programme,” Mr. Kakodkar said. He called for accelerating efforts to bring thorium into energy generation sooner.