The bill was introduced in Parliament by Union Minister of State for Atomic Energy Jitendra Singh.

Parliament Approves SHANTI Bill: Private Companies Can Now Enter India’s Nuclear Power Sector

India’s Parliament passed the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill on Thursday. This remarkable reform opens the country’s nuclear power sector to private participation for the first time. According to official sources, the legislation was cleared by the Lok Sabha mid-week and formally approved by both houses during the winter session. 

The bill was introduced in Parliament by Union Minister of State for Atomic Energy Jitendra Singh, and it proposes a fundamental overhaul of India’s nuclear framework by granting licences to private companies to construct, own, operate, and even decommission nuclear power plants. Government officials said that these roles were until now restricted primarily to public sector entities and government joint ventures.

Under the new provisions, a wider range of entities, including corporate bodies and joint ventures, will be eligible to participate in the civil nuclear power sector after securing the required licences and meeting safety authorisations pertaining to radiation exposure. Experts noted that this reform is a strategic departure from decades of state monopoly in the sector.

A key feature of the Bill is the rationalisation of liability norms. It calls for the removal of a contentious clause from the existing Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act that held suppliers of nuclear fuel and technology accountable under certain circumstances. According to legal analysts, the legislation also seeks to streamline the levels of payouts by operators in case of nuclear accidents, while proposing adjustments to the liability regime to make India a more attractive destination for investment.

Officials said that the bill also aims to boost investment in nuclear energy infrastructure to help the country achieve its ambitious target of 100 gigawatts of nuclear power capacity by 2047, thereby strengthening India’s energy security and supporting its clean-energy goals.

 According to government sources, the new law dismantles these long-standing restrictions, opening the door to broader private sector innovation and capital in a crucial segment of the nation’s energy landscape.

Source: Hindustan Times