India has the world’s largest reserves of thorium — a million tonnes — particularly in its monazite-rich coastal sands. As per the three-stage nuclear programme envisioned by nuclear scientist Dr Homi Bhabha, the country would use thorium when it gets to the third stage. After 70 years of Independence, India has still not started on the second stage.“The US left its research publicly available, waiting for the right successor — we were that successor,” Xu Hongjie, a prominent Chinese nuclear physicist at the Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, recently told the Guangming Daily. He said this after China revived a long-dormant American nuclear technology — thorium-fuelled molten salt reactor.The reactor — a small, experimental system capable of refuelling while operating — was recently brought online, marking significant progress in reimagining the future of nuclear energy. Though not ready for commercial use, it signals a global shift toward next-generation nuclear technologies.However, China swiftly picked up the technology left on the table by the Americans and created a secret facility in the Gobi Desert, near the Mongolian border. It is a small, 2MW facility, but enough to catapult China into a thorium regime.The US explored thorium reactors, especially molten salt types, back in the 1960s before shelving them in favour of uranium-based designs. Now, as the world confronts the twin challenges of climate change and energy security, thorium is making a comeback. Thorium reactors offer multiple advantages: less radioactive waste, more fuel-efficiency and lower risk of nuclear weapons proliferation.

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Published on May 4, 2025

Published on May 2, 2025 The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has floated a consultation paper proposing to restrict permission for manufacturing certain products to food business operators holding state and central licenses only. These products include infant food products, sweetened condensed milk, packaged drinking water , mineral water and milk powders. The Authority has sought comments from stakeholders on the same.In a bid to strengthen the compliance ecosystem, now FSSAI is proposing that existing registered companies that make these products should be transitioned to mandatory licensing. It is also proposing that new players intending to manufacture these high-risk products will need to obtain state or central license to manufacture these products. Therefore, it is proposing to restrict companies that hold FSSAI registration to have permission to make these products. Earlier , manufacturers of products such as infant nutrition, packaged drinking and mineral water and condensed skimmed milk, were required to obtain mandatory certification from the Bureau of Indian Standards besides FSSAI registration or license. However in 2024, the government decided to remove mandatory BIS certification requirements as part of its efforts to ensure ease of doing measures.

Obtaining registration

The Authority noted that obtaining registration involves fewer compliance obligations compared to licensing. Food business operators that obtain FSSAI registration are not required to submit test reports of product analysis on a mandatorily basis. Unlike license holders, it is also not mandatory for FBOs with registration to submit annual returns, have qualified technical personnel to supervise the production process and conduct third-party audits. They only need to comply with very basic hygiene and sanitary standards compared to licensed FBOs. “Additionally, Registered FBOs may lack the technical, financial and infrastructural capabilities to ensure safe production, especially for technically demanding products like infant foods and packaged drinking water,” FSSAI noted in its consultation paper.Currently, food business operators manufacturing these products are required to obtain either FSSAI registration or license based on their eligibility.The Authority said once finalised a special drive will be conducted to convert existing registered FBOs to license category. It also said that about a six months transition period will be given to allow FBOs to shift to the licensing category. As per its estimates, there are over 11,000 food business operators that make such products and hold FSSAI registration.  “ To further strengthen the compliance ecosystem it has been proposed that no new Registrations and renewal of existing registration shall be allowed for manufacturing of the specified products. Only State or Central Licenses shall be permitted,” it stated.