RAS question
The Mahi Banswara Rajasthan Atomic Power Project (MBRAPP) is significant because it is the first nuclear joint venture between which two organisations?
Correct answer: (A) NPCIL and NTPC.
The Mahi Banswara Rajasthan Atomic Power Project is the first nuclear joint-venture project linked to NPCIL and NTPC Ltd.
Explanation
The Mahi Banswara Rajasthan Atomic Power Project in Banswara is significant because the official PIB release says it is being implemented by Anushakti Vidhyut Nigam Limited (ASHVINI), a subsidiary of NPCIL and a joint venture of NPCIL and NTPC Ltd. PIB also identifies it as the first nuclear power project in India to be set up by a joint venture of two Central Public Sector Enterprises. The project scale explains why the partnership matters: it comprises four 700 MW indigenously developed Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors, arranged as Mahi Banswara 1 and 2 and Mahi Banswara 3 and 4, at a total cost of Rs. 42,000 crore. Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone on September 25, 2025.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) ONGC is not named in the PIB release as a partner; the implementing joint venture is linked to NPCIL and NTPC Ltd.
- (C) BARC is not identified as one of the two joint-venture organisations; PIB names NPCIL and NTPC Ltd through ASHVINI.
- (D) Although the release appears under the Department of Atomic Energy, the joint venture named for the project is not DAE and ONGC but NPCIL and NTPC Ltd.
Concept
This tests current-affairs-linked science and technology, especially nuclear power institutions and public-sector implementation models. It recurs in RAS because Rajasthan-specific infrastructure projects often combine location, capacity and institutional partnership details.