A large variety and amount of data of safety significance are routinely collected during the operation of a nuclear power plant (NPP). The data collected in the area of radiological protection have been analyzed to understand the behavior of activated corrosion products and fission products in the primary heat transport system of a pressurized heavy water reactor (PHWR). A correlation between the fuel integrity and the normalized external collective dose to maintenance work groups is clearly established. These studies should help in optimal work planning to keep the radiation exposure of work forces as low as reasonably achievable. The performance indicators introduced by the World Association of Nuclear Operators have been in use for the assessment of the operation and safety of NPPs in the member countries. This, however, helps only in the intercomparison of the operating and safety parameters of the operating NPPs. It was, therefore, felt necessary to work out a scheme that utilizes the data routinely collected at the NPP during the operating phase and also uses the safety analysis performed during design. With this in view, a new concept of safety indices (SIs), for overall assessment of the safety of the operating NPP has been evolved, including SIs in the areas of occupational collective dose, public dose, and fuel reliability, with a view to obtain a direct assessment of the safety of the plant operations, in comparison to a well-defined safety regime and/or regulatory constraints. The SIs in the aforementioned areas are discussed for the Rajasthan Atomic Power Station, an early Canada deuterium uranium PHWR, for the period from 1992 through 1993. The SIs could form a basis for communication among the utilities, the regulatory bodies, and the public, since the concept is direct and simple.