The government on Monday introduced a new Bill in the Lok Sabha called the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, 2025, which will allow private participation in India’s highly restricted nuclear power sector.The new Bill will replace the existing Atomic Energy Act, 1962 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010.The government said the new Bill is a key step towards achieving India’s target of 100 gigawatts of nuclear power capacity by 2047, as it seeks to “harness the full potential of India’s nuclear energy and indigenous resources through active involvement of both the public and private sectors.”“… accelerated growth of Artificial Intelligence, high-performance computing, quantum technologies, indigenous semiconductor fabrication and large-scale data-driven research requires stable, reliable, abundant, clean and round-the-clock power supply, which can be ensured through expanded deployment of nuclear energy and necessitating a new legal framework promoting research and innovation in private-sector,” the short title of the Bill read.A key change in the new Bill is removal of an earlier provision under ‘right of recourse’ which had allowed nuclear plant operators to seek compensation from suppliers in the event of a nuclear accident caused by defective equipment, sub-standard services or acts of suppliers or their employees.This provision was repeatedly flagged by foreign nuclear equipment vendors as a deterrent to investing in India’s nuclear sector as it exposes them to long-term and uncertain liability risks in the event of a nuclear accident.Under the new Bill, both public and private companies, as well as their joint ventures, will be allowed to set up nuclear power plants, transportation or storage of nuclear fuel, and import or export nuclear fuel, technology, equipment and minerals required for nuclear power generation. However, all entities involved in nuclear energy production will be required to obtain safety authorisation from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board. The Bill makes “safety authorisation” mandatory for the manufacture, possession, use, transport, import, export or disposal of radioactive substances and radiation-generating equipment, as well as for establishing, operating or decommissioning radiation facilities.Story continues below this adMeanwhile, the Bill retains certain exclusive Central government control over critical and sensitive activities. These include enrichment and isotopic separation of radioactive substances, management and reprocessing of spent fuel and high-level radioactive waste, production and upgradation of heavy water, among others.The Bill also provides for the creation of new institutional arrangements, including an Atomic Energy Redressal Advisory Council, designation of Claims Commissioners, and a Nuclear Damage Claims Commission for cases involving severe nuclear damage, with the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity acting as the appellate authority. Further, it empowers the Central government to establish a Nuclear Liability Fund for the purpose of meeting its liability in case of a nuclear incident.On the liability front, the Bill specifies graded liability caps for nuclear power operators based on their size of installation. Operators of reactors with thermal power above 3,600 MWe will have a liability limit of Rs 3,000 crore. Reactors with thermal power above 1,500 MWe and up to 3,600 MWe will carry a cap of Rs 1,500 crore, while those above 750 MWe and up to 1,500 MWe will be liable up to Rs 750 crore. For reactors above 150 MWe and up to 750 MWe range, the liability limit is set at Rs 300 crore. Smaller reactors with thermal power up to 150 MWe, fuel cycle facilities other than spent fuel reprocessing plants, and transportation of nuclear materials will have a liability cap of Rs 100 crore.India enacted The Atomic Energy Act, 1962 after repealing the Atomic Energy Act, 1948. Since then, the Act has been amended four times, with the latest amendment being in 2015. However, the sector was confined to the Central government. In 2010, the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 was enacted to provide for civil liability for nuclear damage and prompt compensation to the victims of a nuclear incident through a no-fault liability regime.