Critically examine the SHANTI Act, 2025 as a legislative shift from public-monopoly to public-private participation in India's nuclear energy sector.

Q. Critically examine the SHANTI Act, 2025 as a legislative shift from public-monopoly to public-private participation in India's nuclear energy sector. (15 marks, 250-350 words)

For over six decades India's nuclear sector was a state monopoly under the Atomic Energy Act, 1962. The SHANTI Act, 2025, which replaces that Act and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 [1], marks a decisive but deliberately calibrated opening to private capital.

Nature of the shift - Licensing opened: the Centre may licence companies, and joint ventures between government entities and private companies, to build, own or operate nuclear plants and to fabricate, transport, trade or store nuclear fuel — ending operational exclusivity of public undertakings [1]. - Graded liability: operator liability is tiered from ₹100 crore to ₹3,000 crore by capacity, replacing a single flat cap and giving investors a predictable risk ceiling [1]. - Widened scope: a regulatory framework for non-power uses in health care, agriculture, industry and research [1]. - Passed by both Houses in December 2025, signalling political consensus on the reform [4].

Merits of the opening - The Nuclear Energy Mission target of 100 GWe by 2047, against a present base of roughly 8 GW, is unattainable on budgetary financing alone [2][3]. - The Mission's ₹20,000 crore outlay for Small Modular Reactors [3] presumes industrial partners: BSMR-200 and SMR-55 are designed for brownfield repurposing of retiring fossil plants and captive industrial use [2]. - Supports the net-zero-by-2070 pathway by adding firm, low-carbon baseload [2].

Limitations - Companies incorporated outside India remain barred from licences, limiting foreign technology and equity tie-ups [1]. - Liability is graded, not resolved; supplier apprehension may still deter vendors. - Execution risk is real — five SMRs by 2033 [2] is a tight horizon given land acquisition, fuel supply and the need to scale AERB regulatory capacity to many new operators.

The Act therefore liberalises entry while retaining sovereign control over technology and safety — a pragmatic middle path. Its success will hinge on transparent licensing norms, a well-resourced regulator and phased confidence-building with private entrants, so that nuclear power becomes a dependable pillar of Viksit Bharat's clean-energy transition.

(~325 words)

Sources: 1. Summary of the SHANTI Bill, 2025 — PRS Legislative Research — repeal of the 1962 and 2010 Acts; licensing of private companies and joint ventures; graded ₹100–3,000 crore liability; non-power applications; exclusion of foreign-incorporated companies 2. PIB, Parliament Question: Nuclear Energy Mission for Viksit Bharat — 100 GWe by 2047; five indigenous SMRs by 2033; BSMR-200 and SMR-55 for brownfield and captive use; net-zero 2070 3. PIB, Nuclear Power in Union Budget 2025-26 — ₹20,000 crore Nuclear Energy Mission outlay for SMR research and deployment; existing capacity base 4. PIB, Rajya Sabha passes SHANTI Bill 2025 after Lok Sabha — passage of the Bill by both Houses in December 2025