Lok Sabha clears SHANTI Bill, ending decades of state monopoly over nuclear power
Piloting the Bill, Union Minister of State for Atomic Energy Jitendra Singh described the legislation as a “nuclear renaissance” for India
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In a move set to redefine India’s energy future, the Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, 2025. The legislation, which ends over six decades of exclusive state control over nuclear power, was cleared via a voice vote amid a walkout by the Opposition. The Opposition contended that the Bill dilutes provisions of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010, which passed on the liability for a nuclear incident on to the suppliers of nuclear equipment.
The Bill removes the government’s monopoly, allowing Indian private entities to build, own and operate nuclear power plants for the first time. It addresses long-standing concerns of global equipment suppliers by removing the ‘right of recourse’ against them for defects, unless specifically included in a contract. Operator liability is now capped at rupee equivalent of three hundred million Special Drawing Rights (SDR), or such higher amount as the Central government may, by notification, specify.
unified framework
The SHANTI Bill repeals and replaces the Atomic Energy Act of 1962 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act (CLNDA) of 2010, establishing a unified legal framework to help India achieve its target of 100 GW of nuclear capacity by 2047.
The Bill is expected to be taken up in the Rajya Sabha Thursday or Friday.
Piloting the Bill, Union Minister of State for Atomic Energy Jitendra Singh described the legislation as a “nuclear renaissance” for India. “India’s role in geopolitics is increasing. If we have to be a global player, we have to follow global benchmarks and global strategies. The world is moving towards clean energy. We too have set a target of 100 GW of nuclear energy capacity by 2047,” Singh said. Further, he said that the Bill was necessary to address India’s growing energy needs and increase the share of nuclear power up to 10 per cent of the energy mix. “Nuclear power is also a key segment in achieving the target of Net Zero emissions by 2027 set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he said.
Participating in the debate, Congress MP, Shashi Tharoor described the government’s nuclear energy bill as a “dangerous leap into privatised nuclear expansion” without adequate safeguards and asserted that the pursuit of capital cannot be allowed to override the requirements of public safety, environmental protection and victim justice. Tharoor argued that the Bill’s description of nuclear energy as “clean and abundant” was misleading. “By shielding suppliers from liability even in cases of defective equipment, we are risking the safety of our citizens for the benefit of corporate interests,” he said, adding that the proposed legislation is ridden with exceptions, heavy on discretion and largely indifferent to public welfare. “I am not sure whether it is a nuclear bill or an unclear bill,” he said.
According to statement of objects and reasons of the Bill, it seeks to provide for a pragmatic civil liability regime for nuclear damage and to confer statutory status to the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board. The Bill exempts suppliers of equipment for nuclear power plants from liability for a nuclear incident, which has been limited to the operators, except in cases caused by “a grave natural disaster of an exceptional character, an act of armed conflict, hostility, civil war, and insurrection or terrorism”.
However, the operator won’t be liable for damages in “under-construction nuclear installation itself and any other nuclear installation including a nuclear installation under construction, on the site where such installation is located, any property on the same site which is used or to be used in connection with any such installation; or the means of transport upon which the nuclear material involved was carried at the time of nuclear incident.”
The maximum amount of liability in respect of each nuclear incident shall be the rupee equivalent of three hundred million Special Drawing Rights (SDR) or such higher amount as the central government may, by notification, specify, the legislation added. The bill is aligned to achieve the objectives of increasing the share of nuclear energy in the total energy mix of India, facilitate innovation in nuclear science and technology, expand its use in non-power applications and continue to honour India’s obligations towards safety, security, safeguards and towards nuclear liability.
Published on December 17, 2025
