i'm catherine kobayashi. japan's minister in charge of the nuclear disaster says reactors at the troubled fukushima daiichi nuclear plant will achieve cold shutdown within the year. the initial target was early next year. goshi hosono spoke at the international atomic energy agency's annual ministerial meeting in vienna on monday. >> the situation at the plant is moving steadily toward restoration. we will move up the existing target period and endeavor to achieve this cold shutdown by the end of this year. >> hosono said that decontaminated water has been successfully used to cool the troubled nuclear reactors. he also said spent nuclear fuel pools have been cooled in a stable manner. toekz says the temperature in the number three reactor is below 100 degree celsius for the first time since the accident.

this is the second reactor in which the temperature was reduced to less than 100 degrees, following the number one reactor. tepco says the lower temperature does not automatically mean the reactor achieved cold shut down, but at least indicates the cooling efforts are being effective. the utility now aims to cool the number two reactor. yuko aizawa has more. >> reporter: they expect to have cold shut down by end of the year. he also said there are many factors to consider before the governme government. it will take time to reduce radiation where it does not

effect human health. it is also not clear how the government plans to dispose of the radioactive waste from the contamination process. they promise to send experts to japan to help remove the radioactive materials from contaminated site and dispose of radioactive waste. >> translator: the decontamination is on an unprecedented scale, japan needs all the help and wisdom it can get from around the world. they responded positively to the request. >> reporter: now with cold shut

down in sight and the release of radioactive materials likely to be curbed, the challenge is to speed up the effort to lower radiation levels and allow residents to return home. japan will likely be dealing with the aftermath of the fukushima daiichi accident for many years to come. a number of citizens say it proves using atomic energy is too risky. thousands took to the streets on monday. they rallied in tokyo to pressure government and business leaders to scrap nuclear plants. a nobel prize winning author, an economic critic, and public figures called for people to demonstrate. >> translator: the use of atomic

energy will inevitably have devastating and costly consequences. we have to let government and business leaders know that we, the citizens, are determined to resist nuclear power plants. >> after the rally thousands marched through the streets carrying placards. some said they want children to be protected from radiation exposure. organizers say about 60,000 people joined the rally. police officials maintain only about half that number showed up. nuclear energy experts are discussing how lack of vigilance contributed to the accident. the atomic energy society of japan is having the first conference since the country's nuclear crisis began in march.

the four day meeting opened monday. participants include university professors, researchers and workers from the nuclear energy industry. the professor from tokyo institute of technology is leading the panel that's investigating the fukushima accident. in a morning session, he called on his fellow experts to face the accident head on and work hard to contain it. >> translator: we placed too much confidence in japan's nuclear generation. >> in the afternoon, experts discussed the future of the nuclear energy community. one participant said the fukushima disaster occurred because experts did not address the safety risks they knew existed. another said nuclear officials

should create a culture that's more open to public dialogue. >> translator: we have many opportunities to question nuclear safety, but we fail to do so, the atomic energy society shares responsibility for failing to correct the rigid views of the government and the nuclear industry. we'll do our best to improve the situation, such as decontamination and the handling of nuclear waste. more than six months after the march 11 earthquake and tsunami, some 90,000 people are still waiting for life to return to normal. for now, they must be content with basic accommodation and basic food. in this edition of "the road ahead" we meet a chef that uses his skill and expertise to make

life for the survivors more palatable. >> reporter: meet this chef that owns a french restaurant. since the catastrophe, he has been handing out food to stricken people nonstop. today he and two chefs from outside the prefecture are cooking meals for 170 people. the menu features a nutricious variety of marinated vegetables, soup, and pumpkin pudding. on any given day, it is not unusual for him to travel three hours or more to get to a shelter. then he cooks a meal that is hot, tasty and more nutritious than the usual. >> oh, sure, lunch boxes were being handed out, but they were

all the same and didn't offer any real choice. in the end, people just lose the pleasure of eating. so i thought it would be nice to try to bring some of that pleasure back to them. >> reporter: even before the disaster, he was involved income passionate activities. for several years, he traveled across the prefecture to cook for families. he developed deep ties with many. several of his lost their homes, others vanished. on this day, he journeys to a city leveled by the tsunami. the majority of survivors now live in about 2,000 temporary housing units. the local government food distribution program has

finished. now its up to the locals to feed themselves. but with few opportunities to earn a living, many save money by spending less on food. >> cooking takes time and it's quite a hassle, so this is a real treat. >> reporter: most victims of the disaster say that without the clear idea of their future, they don't feel like cooking. on top of that, the elderly find it difficult to buy groceries. they may not have transportation or they simply don't have the stamina. ito tries his best to give balanced meals, centered on vegetables. he wants to serve the kind of food people ate before the

catastrophe. >> translator: dishes like these are really hard to get around here, so we're very grateful. my kids really seem to love it. and it picks up my spirits when i hear them say that the food is so delicious. >> translator: it really perks me up when i hear that people look forward to our meals. in the end, it encourages me to keep on doing this. >> reporter: he feels his efforts are not just about feeding people but also about helping them reconstruct their lives. today he visit cities wiped out by the tsunami and a huge fire. >> translator: people who live here didn't see the waves coming. their houses were still standing, but when they turned around, the tsunami was carrying

off buildings. on this shopping street alone, some 30 people died. others saved themselves by hanging onto electric power cables. >> reporter: for the past three months, he has been helping women set up an eatery where locals can gather. before this, they were processing seaweed and scallops. the ole industry was sidelined by the giant wave. he brought a grill he ordered especially for the project. it is the idea of cooking seafood and other local products that will be on the menu. they try their hand a noodles.

only one sing will convenience store remains in the community, the shopping street and most restaurants were wiped out. the idea behind the project is not just a place that provides good food, also a base where locals can restart their lives. >> i have been giving a lot of thought about how we could try to make people happier. i also made it through the tsunami, and i think we need to be able to look forward. >> the stores and restaurants are gone. people have no place to meet. since the disaster, maybe some locals pass by others without a word of greeting. that's why i think it's so important for us to provide a central place where people can mingle. >> translator: this kind of

eatery bears a great responsibility, because it is a place where people get together. that's why i really want them to work hard. at the same time, i'm also taking part and i'm glad to be able to support them. >> reporter: and some food, necessary for survival and a place to mix and eat with others, provides people with strength and the will to work together for a better future. >> nearly 100 other chefs joined him in bringing quality food to the disaster zones. some donate meat and other food. as one can imagine, it costs a lot of money to operate the project. he says its survival will depend on getting proper funding.

six japanese men have swum to taiwan from an island in the southernmost prefecture of okinawa to express gratitude for their support following the march 11 disaster. taiwan donated about $240 million to japan after the earthquake and tsunami. the swimmers arrived in northeastern taiwan monday. the group included a university student from the disaster hit prefecture. they departed from the island two days earlier. they took turns to swim 30 minute legs for 110 kilometers braving high wives approaching okinawa. >> translator: it was very moving. we truly work on the gratitude of the japanese youth. it was a very long journey, but the fatigue disappeared the moment i saw the smiling faces

of the taiwanese people. "newsline," the place to turn to for the latest in japan most march 11. we have two segments offering two unique perspectives on the fallout from the nuclear accident and the tsunami. nuclear watch and the road ahead. don't miss nuclear watch and the road ahead on "newsline". strong typhoon roke is churning northward over the ocean south of japan. it's bringing heavy rain to the western and central parts of the country. the japan meteorological agency says that roke is slowly moving north-northwest near the amami islands in the southwestern prefecture of kagoshima on tuesday morning. there is a growing danger of further landslides in wakayama

and nara prefectures where the rivers have triggered landslides triggered by the previous storm. the water level in the dammed up river in tanabe city is approaching its limit. the regional development bureau is advising residents to be on alert for landslides. a magnitude 6.9 earthquake killed at least 60 people in indian, nepal and china. it shook a himalayan state on sunday. the tremor caused buildings to collapse. 47 people died and more than 100 others were hurt. the full extent of the damage is not yet known. phone service is cut and rain is preventing helicopters from conducting surveys. in nepal, six people died. china's agency says the quake killed seven people in the tibetan autonomous region. the indian government sent milita units to the affected

areas. rescuers are having a difficult time because mud and rocks are blocking key mountain roads. more than 600,000 people live in the area near the home to the tea producing hub and other tourist destinations. a diplomat i can tug of war is unfolding in new york this week. palestinian leaders will ask the united nations to recognize their territory as an independent state. the u.n. general assembly debate starts wednesday. palestinian prime minister met on sunday with western financial supporters. his delegation submitted a report describing the israeli occupation as the biggest obstacle to statehood. he told reporters it was vital for the international community to recognize palestine as a full u.n. member. israel strongly opposes the idea. it said in its report that

mutual dialogue is the only way to resolve the issues. the israeli foreign minister said making them a u.n. member would destabilize an already unstable region. mahmoud abbas willow pose it being recognized as independent state in a speech scheduled for friday. one of japan's giants mitsubishi heavy industry detected a computer virus at 11 sites producing defense and nuclear equipment in august. it's investigating the possibility of a cyber attack. the company sa virus found on 83 servers and personal computers was designed to steal data from the company's inhouse network. no leaks have been confirmed. the infected site included shipyards at nagasaki and kobe. and are responsible for man fakih chering destroyers, missiles and power plants. the company has consulted the tokyo metropolitan police

debarment and carried out an investigation with security experts. mitsubishi heavy industries says the virus may have originated outside the company's computer network. shares in new york were sold as euro zone finance ministers failed to make progress solving the greek fiscal crisis. stocks on the dow-jones average were down more than 250 points briefly, before rebounding to close at 11,401, down 108 points. now let's look at other market figures.

now let's look at the latest in sumo. >> as we enter second week of the grand sumo tournament, big names are facing one another. let's go to highlight matches on day nine. he is on the longest undefeated streak in top division career.

baruto off to a strong start. he is unable to generate the final surge forward. instead, he regroups and reloads with a right hand outside grip. he loses his first match and a share of first place. both men like a left hand shallow grip. that's probably the only similarity between these two. that force out moves lord of the ring one step closer to his 20th career championship. the loudest noise came from this

match. not because he is among the leaders but the heaviest and the other is the lightest. he is 98 kilograms, making him less than half the weight of 199 kilograms. it is an overseas versus oversize. he is ready, he lands a paw on the skinny guy from czech republic, he gives him a look to say don't try that weak stuff again. he is enjoying his best tournament ever. here is the updated leader board after nine days of sumo. to no one's surprise, hakuho is alone in first place. they all have their eighth victory, hope to catch him. that leader board will change on

day ten. there will be a show down. we will have that match and more here on "newsline." welcome back to your weather update. looking at the wet weather heading to japan today. a couple of tropical systems. this tropical storm is heading out to sea. but this one, roke is going to bring heavy showers across japan today for much of the country. we will talk about ample amounts of rain, especially on the pacific side of southern japan. that will include areas that are already prone to land slides, so it is going to be a lot of rain to keep an eye on during the

course of today. you can see the main rain from typhoon roke moving in. here is the forecast path for the next 72 hours. looks like it is going to be heading right for main land japan, possibly making landfall in the central areas, then crossing right through. so it is going to be a stormy next couple days for japan. it is picking up speed, however. so it shouldn't be that same slow system. nonetheless, definitely plenty of stormy weather to keep our eye on. eastern china remaining dry. inland portions here looking at light showers. there have been landslides and flooding. that rainfall will pose a problem here. highs tuesday looking mild for the north. 22 in shanghai, 23 in seoul, and tokyo falling below the 30 degree mark for a change. over towards the americas, rain is moving through the eastern half of canada and the united states, but it is looking like

it is going to taper off to the northeast corner. but for the southeast, looks to remain unsettled. behind another one along the canadian border, that will pose a couple of showers. otherwise a dry picture. 20 degrees expected in vancouver, seattle up to 30 degrees. and los angeles will be on the warm side. and finally, a look at europe here. it is looking a little wet and stormy here for parts of central and eastern areas of europe. even talking about mountain snow for parts of germany and austria. this system is going to break up, though. we will see that rain more likely head to the south balance cans, italy will look at showers and heavier downpours and some thunderstorm activity. rain heads northward. the british isles wet and on the

windy side. temperatures for tuesday, definitely mild overall. 15 only in stockholm. 13 degrees in vienna. it is going to be fairly hot for athens at 33. rome looking milder at 25 degrees. all right. let's look at your weather conditions for now and here is the three day outlook.

that's it for this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us.

cptioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions >> ifill: president obama called for $1.5 trillion in new taxes today as part of a ten-year plan to cut the deft.