In response a technical team from EU and then from ITER visited India, especially to Institute for Plasma Research and other Indian industries for negotiations and assess Indian competence to join ITER. Finally at the final ITER negotiations meeting held at Jeju, Korea on the 6th December, 2005 India was accepted as a full partner in the ITER project. Thus India became the 7th and the latest partner to join ITER. With this more than half of the world’s humanity is involved in this unprecedented scientific and technological endeavour.

India’s contributions to ITER

ITER will be built mostly through in-kind contributions by the seven partners, meaning they will build their share of ITER components through an appropriately formed Domestic Agency (DA) and industries and deliver them to ITER for final assembly of the device. India will be contributing, like other partners except the host EU, about 10% of the ITER construction cost (EU pays about 40%).

Most of this will be in the form of components made by the Indian industry and delivered to ITER.Only a small part (~1%) will be paid in cash to a common fund for in-cash procurements by the ITER International Team.

ITER-India is the Indian DA formed to deliver India’s contribution to ITER. Following are the ITER components to be delivered by India :
· Cryostat and Vacuum vessel pressure suppression system
· Vessel ferromagnetic inserts
· Cryolines and cryo-distribution system
· Heat rejection and water cooling system components
· Ion Cyclotron heating and current drive sources, power supplies and control systems
· Startup Electron Cyclotron heating source, power supply and control system
· Diagnostic Neutral Beam
· Some diagnostic systems