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India forms new body to oversee nuclear safety

by Nita Bhalla | Thomson Reuters Foundation
Tuesday, 30 August 2011 16:11 GMT

* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Japan's nuclear crisis has raised concerns about whether due attention is being given to the risk of a nuclear fallout in India

The Indian government is planning to establish a nuclear safety regulatory authority following the nuclear fallout after this year’s tsunami in Japan and amidst concerns by environmentalists about the country's rapidly emerging power plants, the Hindustan Times reported on Tuesday.

With an energy deficit of about 12 percent, power-starved India is rapidly establishing nuclear plants to fuel its economic growth. It currently has 22 plants across the country and at least six more are on the way.

But the events at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi plant have not only resurrected concerns from environmentalists and social activists over the need for nuclear power, but also whether due attention is being given to the risk of a nuclear fallout in the world's second-most populous nation.

"The council of nuclear safety – expected to be headed by the prime minister – will oversee and review policies with respect to radiation and nuclear safety and other related matters," said the report.

 

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