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India to review reactor safety after Japan quake

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced Monday a review of all nuclear reactors in India in view of the radiation leak in tsunami-devastated Japan.
/ Source: The Associated Press

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced Monday a review of all nuclear reactors in India in view of the radiation leak in tsunami-devastated Japan.

The atomic energy authorities and the state-run company that operates Indian nuclear plants have been ordered to check the safety features of the installations, Singh told lawmakers in Parliament.

"Government attaches the highest importance to nuclear safety," Singh said.

The review will look at the ability of nuclear reactors to withstand the impact of big natural disasters such as tsunamis and earthquakes.

Singh assured lawmakers that Indian nuclear reactors had an impeccable record and operated safely during an earthquake and the 2004 tsunami.

When the tsunami struck, the nuclear power plant in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu was safely shut down and restarted a few days later without any problem.

Quake-stricken Japan is scrambling to contain a nuclear meltdown following hydrogen and fuel tank explosions at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant.

The risk of radiation from nuclear plants following a natural disaster has raised fears in India, which has 20 nuclear power plants, mostly located along the coast.