Bangalore:
Although the situation in Japan continues to be worrisome in the nuclear aftermath of the earthquake fed tsunami, city-based Japanese nationals hope that the country would soon get back on its feet. For 73 year-old Teruko Matsuoka, a Bangalore-based Japanese homemaker, this is not the first disaster that the country has experienced.
During her childhood, she lived underground for two years after atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States in the final stages of World War II.
Calling the earthquake graver than the bombing, Matsuoka said, "Mental trauma and the fear will continue to haunt Japan for years. It will take at least 10 years for us to come back to normal, but we will make it. Also, we should expand our nuclear projects and use better technology to make it safer."
While most agree that Japan will soon recover, others say that more care should be taken about the location of nuclear plants in the country. "As a country prone to earthquakes, we are used to these events.
But the location of nuclear plants near the ring of fire makes it dicey and other countries should heed this as a warning. In future Japan will have technology to foresee such disasters," said Kiyomi Yamada, who has been working in Nippon Express for the last two years.
Doing their bit, Japanese car maker Toyota has postponed the inauguration of its second car manufacturing plant at Bidadi, which was initially scheduled for today. "It is a gesture of solidarity to our colleagues in Japan who are facing a crisis.
There are about 400 Japanese nationals working in the city. Bangalore is considered to be the city with the second highest Japanese population in India
Harima, a Japanese restaurant in the city, will soon be putting up a contribution box for customers to donate money to help the earthquake and Tsunami victims. Junko Ravindran, director of Harima and member of the Japanese Association in Bangalore said, "As of now we have planned to have a contribution box in our restaurant, and members of the association are also considering other ways to help those suffering back in our homeland."