India's Cabinet on Thursday approved the sites for four new nuclear power stations, a government spokesman said.
The new plants would be located in the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan, Information and Broadcasting Minister S Jaipal Reddy told reporters.
Two of them would be pressurised heavy water reactors and the other two light water reactors, a government statement released later on Thursday said. No financial details were provided.
The Cabinet decision came nearly two months after India and the United States agreed on a program of civilian nuclear cooperation, though the landmark deal is subject to United States Congressional approval.
India's 14 nuclear reactors currently generate 2,720 mega watts of electricity, or nearly 2.5% of the total electricity generated in the country, Dow Jones Newswires reported.
India plans to increase its generation capacity by 100,000 mega watts by 2012 and open up transmission and distribution systems to competition. India aims to have 20,000 mega watts of nuclear power capacity by 2020.
At present, nine civil nuclear reactor projects are in various stages of construction in the country, a government statement said.
The US pressure on India to take a firm stand against Iran's decision to enrich uranium has caused tension between the two countries.
The US Congress is debating whether Washington should give India access to civilian nuclear technologies even though New Delhi has not signed the global Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.
India and France also recently agreed to negotiate a pact to cooperate on nuclear power.
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