fault fears. a power company in japan is going to dig underneath a nuclear plant after scientists raise concerns about the stability of the land. welcome to nhk world "newsline." last year's accident exposed the vulnerability to disaster. operators are under pressure to reassess the safety of their facilities. one utility is checking what lies beneath a plant on the sea of japan coast trying to figure out if a fault running below a reactor could trigger an earthquake. the operator of the shika plant launched the investigation, the facility is located in the prefecture, it runs over 300 meters, 250 meters below reactor number one.

experts say it's very likely to be active. workers will dig a tunnel under the reactor to check for traces of seismic activity. analysts will compile a report by january. all units at the shika plant are currently offline but residents say they are concerned. >> translator: i don't want the reactors to be restarted because we don't know what can happen. >> translator: they should have investigated the fault much earlier, before we even had this kind of debate. >> nhk world is covering this story for us. we heard from some of these residents and they are angry. quite understandable in the wake of what happened at fukushima daiichi. shika has been operating for 20 years. why is the investigation process starting right now? >> gene, obviously the fukushima accident is one reason. the government ordered nuclear operators to make sure that the land under the plant is stable

but the concern about the shika, this plant, pre-date last year's disaster. the power company applied for permission to build the plant in 1987. the document used for that application included figures showing the shapes and the locations of fracture running under the site. the company researcher said those fractures wouldn't pose a problem. the government approved the plan. in 2006 the government revised its quake, earthquake register guidelines for nuclear plants. the operator was ordered to examine active faults around the facility. the company's engineers carry out a drill survey in 2008 to reassess 20 faults near the shika plant. but for reasons unknown, they didn't include the fractures under question in their survey. >> what happens if investigators

discover the fault under the plant is actually active? >> if that's the case, they could trigger an earthquake, the operator wouldn't be allowed to restart the reactors and it would be forced to shut down the facility for good. government guidelines for nuclear plants do not allow utility to build or operate the facilities above active faults. the nuclear industry as you know under great security in the wake of the fukushima accident. the operators have to make sure reactors pass new safety tests before they can bring the units back online. two of japan's 50 commercial reactors are running right now but there's a possibility that facility, that ohi plant also sits on active fault. the government has ordered ohi operators to do comprehensive checks. the government panel that investigated the fukushima

accident pointed out in their report this week that japan is prone to natural disaster and the operators need to change the attitude toward disaster preparedness. >> prosecutors in japan have decided to accept criminal complaints over the fukushima accident. local residents filed complaints last month against the central government and the plant's operator. about 1300 people asked prosecutors to investigate top officials in the government and tokyo electric power company. the plaintiffs accuse the officials of professional negligence. other groups have filed similar complaints in tokyo and elsewhere. sources tell nhk the prosecutors made the decision earlier this week after a government appointed panel of experts released the final report on accident and prosecutors are required to identify the cause of the accident if they decide to file charges. the government panel and three other committees that conducted probes failed to do that.

medical experts say it would be hard to prove radioactive materials from the damaged plants caused residents of fukushima or other places in japan physical harm. thousands of people in japan are on the front lines of a fight against an invisible enemy. they are cleaning up the radiation that leaked and is still leaking from fukushima daiichi. some of them work at the damaged nuclear plant. others in the towns and cities surrounding it. either way, they all rely on one key piece of equipment and the people who shrugged health fears to stay in northeastern japan to make it. here's the story. hundreds of thousands of workers are part of the cleanup operation in fukushima. radiation could be anywhere. so they are required to wear plenty of protective gear, boots, gloves and thick clothing.

masks are also part of their work wardrobe. they could make the difference between staying healthy and getting sick. >> translator: we cannot go without masks. >> reporter: the melt downs and explosions at fukushima daiichi released a massive amount of radiation into the environment. decontamination crews use disposable mask and workers at the plan have more varieties. that created a booming mask making business in japan. suppliers have been racing to keep up with demand. the manufacturer that's leading the way is located here. he is in charge of the factory, which the earthquake partially damaged. it produces about 90% of protective masks used at nuclear plants across japan, including fukushima daiichi. demand increased five-fold after

march 11, 2011 too 3,000 masks per month. >> translator: if we didn't supply masks, workers at the plant wouldn't be able to work to contain the nuclear accident. if the accident cannot be contained, that would put all of japan at risk, i thought. >> reporter: he faced a dilemma because he didn't know if it was safe to be in the factory. it's outside the evacuation zone surrounding daiichi but he still worried his 100 workers could be exposed to radiation. >> translator: if they weren't making masks they would have wanted to evacuate to a safer place because we had no information about the radiation. >> reporter: 33-year-old mayumi is one of the factory employees

who kept showing up at work, despite the lingering fears. >> translator: i am trying my best to maintain quality of the product. >> reporter: the mother of two couldn't quit her job for financial reasons. she also felt compelled to stay in the city where she was born and raised. still, concerns about radiation were never far away her children usually had more to ask than, how was your day, whenever she finished a shift. >> translator: i asked her if she was all right with the radiation. >> translator: actually, she told me to stay away because radiation was infectious. >> reporter: jokes aside, she takes her role at factory seriously. she sees it as part of the larger effort to help japan deal

with the fukushima accident. >> translator: i want the nuclear disaster to be contained as soon as possible. it's not really for my own sake, but for the future of our children. >> reporter: the masks they make here thousands a day help protect crews on the front lines of the fight to clean up fukushima daiichi. the workers hope that will help reduce the risks facing their children in the towns they've called home since they were children. jun yatsumoto, nhk world.

aung san suu kyi was recently able to travel abroad for the first time in decades, now the politician has returned to her role in parliament in her first priority is protecting the country's ethnic minorities. patchari raksawong joins us with more. myanmar's democratic icon delivered her first speech on wednesday. opposition leader aung san suu kyi spoke out on a bill designed to protect rights of ethnic minorities. the legislation was submitted by ruling party lawmakers. myanmar is said to have around 135 ethnic minority groups fighting continues between the military and ethnic minority militants making it a top political challenge. aung san suu kyi won her seat in april, her party is pursuing its campaign promise of revising the pro-military constitution. the party is expected to back bills proposed by the ruling

party if it considers them instrumental in democratizing the country. turning to india, former finance minister is the country's new president. he was sworn in on wednesday after winning last week's election with support from the ruling congress party. he was elected by members of national and state parliament on sunday. he won about 70% of votes beating the opposition party candidate by a large margin. at the inauguration ceremony, he stressed that poor people should be given their share of the wealth brought about by the country's economic growth. nearly half of children aged five or younger are suffering from malnutrition. in india the president is anch seen as a symbol of national unity with the prime minister holding the real political power. it's rare for a political veteran like mukherjee to take up the post. india like china is an

emerging economy and driving force behind global economic growth. but inflation is casting a dark shadow over the nation's economy. nhk world's abhishek dhulia reports. >> reporter: the price of cabbage and call flower has increased by 40% compared to last year. food prices have been rising year after year in india as it's economy continues to grow. >> inflation gives pressure. no matter how much an increase you have, that's true. >> reporter: wholesale prices are up more than 7% from a year ago. the country's central bank is making efforts to curb inflation. the bank of india raised its

benchmark interest rate 13 times since march 2010. this april the bank slightly lowered the rate to give a boost to the economy. but worries over inflation have kept the bank from making further cuts. meanwhile, high interest rates are dampening consumer spending. auto dealers say that sales are sluggish and interest rates on loans remain high.

>> the indian government is working under a deficit of around $90 billion, which makes it difficult for them to introduce stimulus measures. subsidies for diesel fuel and other commodities set the government back by about $12 million a year. but the strong public approval of these subsidies prevents the government from cutting back on them in order to finance new initiatives. the government and the central bank have not been able to come up with an effective plan to turn things around. will india be able to gain its momentum? as the global economy continues to lose steam, the world will be

watching closely. abhishek dhulia, nhk world, new delhi. >> india has also seen an outbreak of ethnic conflict this week. fierce fighting has left 36 people dead and 50,000 fleeing to safety. clashes broke out last week between the ethnic minority community and muslim settlers. the fighting is centered in the western part of assam state. near the border with butan. and to quell the violence, the government issued a night time cure few on sunday and sent in troops on tuesday. the fighting is the latest to erupt in the area where separatists movements have been building steam. problems over landownership rights have also occurred between indigenous tribes and muslim settlers.

that's going to wrap up our bulletin for today. i'm patchari raksawong in bangkok. >> the united nations security council is deadlocked over how to deal with the conflict in syria. now u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton says the united states will side step the council and try to find a solution with the arab league and other partners. >> we obviously spent a good amount of time working to find a way that russia and china could move forward with us in the security council, that is on the far back burner right now. >> russia and china last week vetoed a security council resolution that would have imposed sanctions on the syrian administration of president bashar al assad. >> we will intensify our efforts with the arab league, with the neighbors, with the friends of syria, with all of the other elements that are not affected

by the failure to act in the security council. >> the violence in syria is growing worse. fighter jets and helicopter gun ships joined the fighting in aleppo, syria's second largest city and world heritage site. a human rights group says more than 100 people were killed on tuesday. syrians are at war as the majority of them are supposed to be marking one of the holiest periods, ramadan started last week. the faithful fast during daylight hours then they gather with family and friends in the evening to break their fast. some muslims who have moved away from home returned for ramadan. but this year, the situation in syria and political uncertainty and other countries is staging that -- changing rather that annual ritual. nhk world reports from dubai. ♪

>> reporter: this is a mosque in dubai. at sunrise, people begin a month of daytime fasting for ramadan. ramadan starts about ten days earlier each year because of the lunar calendar, this year ramadan and summer holy days begin at almost the same time. people are busy taking trips or going back to their home towns. about 1.8 million foreigners leave in the fast growing dubai, that's 90% of the population. muslims from syria, egypt, india, pakistan and other countries are here working to get rich or just support families back home.

every year many of them return home during ramadan. but this year, the flow has reversed. people are fleeing for dubai. >> they come here to have a safe time. even the people who are from syria, lebanon and egypt and instead they visit their family, they ask her family to come here. >> he works for a foreign company in abu dhabi since years ago. he lives with his wife and daughter. the couple comes from the central syrian city of homs, one of the bloodiest battle grounds in the civil war. many of the parents and relatives are still there. but the couple find it's too dangerous to visit them.

the couple tries to call their family every night. but only rarely reaches them. on this day, he was lucky to connect with a relative's neighbor. >> reporter: the couple brought gifts to bring home but they have no idea when they will be able to make it. >> translator: for muslims, ramadan is a special time for family. our daughter says she wants to see her grandpa and grandma.

>> my mother is still ill. i miss her. i want to see her. >> reporter: ramadan is supposed to be a time for family reunions, this year looks to be a lonely one for many. nhk world, dubai. here are other news making headlines this hour. the japanese government has set up a panel of experts to make its own assessment of the safety of the u.s. military's osprey transport aircraft. defense minister presided over the first meeting on wednesday. he said he hopes the experts will objectively investigate the accidents and help people understand the aircraft is safe. a former aid to british prim minister david cameron and seven others are facing charges over a phone hacking scandal involving the now defunct "news of the world" tabloid paper.

the opposition labor party is investigating cameron's role in hiring former "news of the world" editor andy coal son. any new indictments could deal a severe blow. ghana's president john atta mills died. he was 68 years old. mills was elected president of the western african nation in 2008. he promoted economic reform and the fight against poverty in ghana. the international community consistently held him up as an example of how to lead a stable african democracy. the president's office did not give the cause of the death but ghana's media has reported concerns about his health recently. now here's the latest market figures. .

it's not sunny but hot and muggy in tokyo. robert speta has the weather for here and elsewhere. very hot across much of japan. temperatures high 20s and low 30s due to high pressure lingering just towards the south. it is pulling warm air out of the south and also some high humidity, as well. very uncomfortable but especially through your overnight hours across much of japan. you are going to be seeing lows only at around 25 degrees. still very hot night throughout the remainder of the week cracking open a window to get air to move through here.

towards the west rain showers towards northeastern china. and across southern china you are also seeing very heavy rainfall all due to the remnants moving towards vietnam. that is moving away continuing to weaken but still grabbing moisture out of south china sea pushing it off. even towards hong kong. you are still going to be seeing heavy rainfall. good news on friday it is expected to start taper off as the winds continue to lighten. just east of the philippines you see areas of orange due to a possibility of a new developing system we are watching across the philippines for possible tropical development. temperature-wise shanghai at 34. mongolia with only a high of 23. towards the americas the southwest you are seeing thunderstorms pop up here. you see the white cloud tops

firing up on the map mainly due to the monsoonal flow. but farther towards the east we have the cold front diving down from the north. this is going to bring very welcomed rainfall towards kansas, oklahoma and down towards texas, as well. also seeing severe weather raesz the great lakes. storms knocking out thousands of power here as the storms blew up on your wednesday it does look like this is going to be on tap yet again. really what is fuelling this is the cold and warm air masses colliding here really creating a war zone in here. you can see where the cold front was and the warm front and south of that it is hot. ouichita with a high of 41. cool in winnipeg. 22 for your high on wednesday. towards europe also seeing rough weather across italy towards the balkans. all due to this lingering area

of low pressure still bringing the rough weather here for you. on the other hand towards the southern portions of the u.k. getting ready for the olympics it isry maining rather dry here on your wednesday and thursday. look towards the side of your screen, possibility of rainfall coming in on your friday. at least on thursday those sungy skies and temperatures still remaining hot on friday. into the evening hours there is a chance you might see some rain showers. going into saturday cloudy skies. temperatures are going to be dropping down as this moves through. it will be rather cool for you on your weekend here in london. here is the look for the rest of you.

we'll be back with more updates in 30 minutes. i'm gene otani in tokyo.