In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires :-
(i) “accident condition” means a substantial deviation from normal operating conditions which could lead to release of unacceptable quantities of radioactive materials if the relevant engineered safety features did not function as per design intent;
(ii) “Act” means the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 (33 of 1962);
(iii) “adequate protection” means protection against radiation so provided that the prescribed operational limits are not exceeded;
(iv) “applicant” means a person or an organisation that applies, in Form A , for granting of authorisation to perform specified activities connected with disposal of radioactive wastes;
(v) “authorisation” means permission for disposal of radioactive wastes, granted by the competent authority in Form B;
(vi) “authorised person” means a person authorised by the competent authority to disposal of radioactive waste in accordance with the provisions of these rules;
(vii) “competent authority” means any officer or authority appointed by the Central Government by notification under these rules;
(viii) “Conditioning” means those operations, chemical or physical, that transform the radioactive waste into a form suitable for transport, storage or final disposal and may include converting the waste to another form, enclosing the waste in containers and providing additional packaging;
(ix) “Contamination” means the presence of radioactive substance in a material or place that may be specified as excessive by the competent authority by notification for the purposes of these rules;
(x) “disposal” means release of any material to the environment in a manner leading to loss of control over the future disposition of the radionuclides contained therein and includes emplacement of waste materials in a repository;
(xi) “disposal limits” means the limits for disposal of radioactive waste, prescribed from time to time by the competent authority under these rules;
(xii) “effluent” means gaseous, particulate or liquid emission which is discharged from the installation into its environment;
(xiii) “environment” means the surroundings of an installation that will influence the life, survival and development of human beings and any organisms relevant to man;
(xiv) “employer” means a person who employs workers or who is self-employed as a worker in an installation;
(xv) “Form” means form attached to these rules;
(xvi) “installation” or “institution” means any location wherein the processes incidental to the waste generation, conditioning, storage and disposal are carried out;
(xvii) “institutional control” means controls or actions to preclude unauthorised human contact with radioactive waste and includes controlled access to the installation and to the restricted area around it, periodic inspection and surveillance of the said installation and its restricted area, controlled productive use of the said restricted area and restrictions in the form of titles and deeds for land use;
(xviii) “operational limits” means operational limits prescribed from time to time under the Radiation Protection Rules, 1971;
(xix) “packaging” means any container prepared for containing the conditioned waste for handling, transportation, storage or disposal and may be permanent part of the waste package or it may be a reusable cask or overpack;
(xx) “person” includes,
(i) any individual, corporation, association of persons whether incorporated or not, partnership, estate, trust, private or public institution, group, government agency, or any state or any political sub-division thereof or any political entity within state, any foreign government or nation or any political sub-division of any such government or nation or other entity; and
(ii) any legal successor, representative or agent of each of the foregoing;
(xxi) “Radiological Safety Officer” means any person who is so designated by the employer and who, in the opinion of the competent authority, is qualified to discharge the duties and functions outlined in rule 13 of these rules;
(xxii) “radioactive waste” means any waste material containing radionuclides in quantities or concentrations as prescribed by the competent authority by notification in the official gazette;
(xxiii) “repository” means an underground geological formation with or without enginenered barriers or an overground vault in which waste may be emplaced for disposal;
(xxiv) “restricted area” means any area access to which is controlled by the employer and approved as such by the competent authority for purposes of protection of individuals from exposure to radiation and radioactive contamination;
(xxv) “scheduled” means schedule attached to these rules;
(xxvi) “storage” as distinct from disposal, means containment of the radioactive wastes under controlled conditions and under radiation surveillance in accordance with the provisions of the Radiation Protection Rules, 1971;
(xxvii) “Surveillance” includes all planned activities performed, —
(i) to ensure that conditions at an installation remain within prescribed limits;
(ii) to ensure that the operational limits prescribed under the Radiation Protection Rules, 1971, are not exceeded; and
(iii) to detect in a timely manner any unsafe condition and the degradation of structure, system and components which could at a later time result in an unsafe condition in the installation or in its environment;
(xxviii) “waste form” means the physical land chemical form of the waste, without its packaging;
(xxix) “waste package” means waste form duly contained in its packaging for handling, transportation, storage or disposal;
(xxx) words and expressions used in these rules and not defined but defined in the Act, shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in the Act.