2 held in Kolkata for illegal possession of radioactive substances

Kolkata, Aug 26 (PTI) The West Bengal CID has arrested two persons from an area near the airport here for illegal possession of radioactive substances, which have an "estimated worth of Rs 4,250 crore", a senior officer said on Thursday.

Acting on a tip-off from a person, who was apparently approached by the duo for the sale of the four pieces of radioactive elements, CID sleuths apprehended them.

One of the four pieces seized is suspected to be Californium, which has several practical uses and costs something around Rs 170 crore for one gram, police sources said.

“The duo claimed that they bought the radioactive substances, which weighed over 250 gm in all, from someone in Karnataka, after chancing upon him on social media,” the officer explained.

The two accused have been arrested on Wednesday under the Atomic Energy Act and various sections of the IPC, the CID officer said.

“We believe these materials have been stolen from some laboratory. We have initiated a probe into this matter,” he added.

Californium is mostly used in laboratories as a radio active element for research, eminent scientist Prof. Bikash Sinha told PTI.

"It is used for purposes for identifying ores, in petroleum industry etc. It is used for commercial purposes," Sinha, a former director of the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics and Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre, said.

To a question, he said that in practical senses, making a nuclear bomb with the substance is absurd as it would be hugely expensive.

CID officials said that if tests prove the seized substances to be Californium, their market value could be around Rs 4,250 crore. PTI SCH SUS RMS NN NN