First KCL Workshop on the Security of Radioactive Sources in India
King’s College London organised two workshops on the Fundamentals of Radiological Sources Security in India with the support of Nuvia India and Delhi Technological University (DTU). The KCL-Nuvia India workshop took place from the 30th of August to the 1st of September in New Delhi; the KCL-DTU workshop took also place in New Delhi from the 4th to the 6th of September. That was the first time that a foreign academic institution such as KCL had ever conducted in-country training and educational activities focused on the security of radioactive sources for the Indian community.
The KCL-Nuvia India workshop was attended by 14 Indian participants from local companies and governmental departments operating in the medical, oil & gas, chemicals, food processing, and emergency response sectors. Most of participants were in a senior position at manager or director level and almost all of them had some level of accountability for radiological source security at their organisation. The workshop was intended to introduce participants to threats posed by non-state actors and how security measures can be used to mitigate them. Drawing heavily on examples of international and UK best practice, the workshop included lectures and seminar format, group activities, real-life case studies, and a detailed table-top exercise built around a hypothetical medical facility.
The KCL-DTU workshop was attended by various DTU faculty members and students, along with five academics from the University of Dehradun, IFTM University, Amity University, Mody University of Science & Technology, and the University of Delhi. This was the first time that Indian academics had the opportunity to attend a workshop solely focused on radiological security. The workshop agenda followed very closely the one of the KCL-Nuvia India workshop and differed mainly for the inclusion of introductory pedagogical sessions about the utility of using case studies and table-top exercises in teaching radiological security and on curriculum design principles. KCL subject matters shared their experiences in introducing radiological security elements within educational curricula at KCL and the University of Cumbria (UK), and participants discussed openly about the main challenges they would face by starting a similar process at their own institutions.