SHANTI Bill, 2025

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Why in News?

The Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, 2025 was introduced in the Lok Sabha to allow private sector participation in nuclear power generation and to overhaul India’s nuclear liability and regulatory framework.

Description:

Key Features and Reforms:

1.    Private Sector Participation:

  • Permitted Entry: For the first time, private companies and joint ventures are allowed to build, own, operate, or decommission a nuclear power plant/reactor.
  • Equity Cap: Allows private companies up to 49% minority equity in nuclear power projects.
  • Foreign Investment: Permits up to 49% FDI in certain nuclear activities.
  • Expanded Scope (Value Chain): Private players are allowed in areas like:
    • Exploration of atomic minerals, Fuel fabrication and manufacturing of nuclear equipment/components & Research and Development, including Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) {maximum output of 300-Megawatt electric (MWe)}
  • Core Areas Retained by Government: Critical activities remain under exclusive central government control, such as:
    • Enrichment and isotopic separation of radioactive substances.
    • Management and reprocessing of spent fuel and high-level radioactive waste.

2.   Overhaul of Nuclear Liability (Addressing a major investment bottleneck):

  • Acts to be Repealed: Atomic Energy Act, 1962, Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act (CLND Act), 2010
  • Removal of Supplier Liability: The Bill omits the contentious supplier liability clause (Section 46 of the former CLND Act, 2010). This provision, which allowed operators to seek recourse from suppliers for defective equipment, was a major deterrent for foreign vendors (e.g., US companies).
  • Operator Liability Cap: Specifies graded liability caps for the operator based on reactor size, with a maximum cap of ₹3,000 crores for the largest reactors (above 3,600 MWe).
  • Financial Mechanism: Mandates operators to obtain an insurance policy or financial security mechanism to cover their liability.
  • Government Backstop: The Central Government is empowered to establish a Nuclear Liability Fund to meet liability where it exceeds the operator’s specified amount or where the government itself is involved.

3.   New Institutional Mechanism:

  • Independent Regulator: Confers statutory status on the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) to separate safety regulations from the policy promotional roles of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE). The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) was set up under the direct charge of the Prime Minister through a Presidential Order on August 3, 1954.
  • Dedicated Tribunal: Provides a Dedicated Nuclear Tribunal to handle disputes related to nuclear liability and contracts, streamlining the resolution process.
  • Redressal Council: Proposes an Atomic Energy Redressal Advisory Council.

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