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India, a founding member of the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP), is set to deepen its engagement with the Singapore-based Information Sharing Centre (ISC) of the grouping, its Executive Director Vijay D Chafekar has said. "We expect closer cooperation with the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), the Indian Focal Point of ReCAAP, for promoting safe and secure seas in Asia," Chafekar told PTI on Saturday. India is one of the founding members of the 21-nation ReCAAP, which was established as a regional, government-to-government institution for enhancing maritime security and ship safety. The grouping is also drawing interest from countries beyond Asia, Chafekar said. Most of the attacks on ships are now for stealing engine and machinery spares for which there is demand in parallel markets. There has not been any incident of kidnapping of crew or hijacking ships in recent years, said the retired Additional ...
India is developing 200 MW nuclear power reactors, compact in size that can be deployed on commercial ships. "Nuclear power is generated by causing nuclear fission to create heat that leads to electricity production. You can put the reactor wherever you want, even on a ship," a senior official said here. He said scientists at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) are developing two nuclear power reactors of 55 MW and 200 MW that could be deployed at captive power plants used by energy-intensive companies such as cement manufacturers. "These nuclear reactors are very safe and can even be used to power merchant navy ships," the official said, sidestepping questions of their use to power nuclear submarines. He said these Bharat Small Modular Reactors (BSMR) will be the mainstay in the expansion of the share of nuclear power in India's energy mix. Currently, India operates two home-built nuclear submarines -- INS Arihant and INS Arighaat -- which are powered by 83 MW reactors. A th