India to set up independent nuclear watchdog

India has decided to set up an independent watchdog to oversee all of its nuclear reactors in view of mounting concerns about the safety of such installations. Those concerns have intensified since an earthquake-spawned tsunami knocked out cooling systems at a Japanese nuclear power plant, unleashing massive amounts of radiation into the environment.
But discontent over the country's atomic energy has been simmering for some time: Residents of a western Indian town have complained about the safety of a plant planned for their community and demanded more compensation for moving. V. Narayanswamy, a minister in the prime minister's office, said Tuesday, that the government is preparing a bill to be introduced in the next session of parliament to create an autonomous nuclear regulatory authority.