PARLIAMENT QUESTION: THORIUM-BASED POWER PROJECTS

• A Lok Sabha question (11 March 2026) answered by the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) on India's strategy to deploy thorium-based power as the third stage of the indigenous nuclear programme.
• Confirms Molten Salt Reactor (MSR) / Molten Salt Breeder Reactor (MSBR) as envisaged technologies for thorium utilisation but admits the technology is not yet matured.
• Critical for UPSC: links energy security, three-stage nuclear programme, Stage-3 thorium economy, FBR commissioning at Kalpakkam and India's net-zero pathway.