Post by : Mariam
Al-Faris
President Droupadi Murmu has granted her approval to the SHANTI Bill, passed by Parliament during the Winter Session, marking a major step in India’s civil nuclear energy development. The government notification confirmed that the President signed the bill on Saturday.
The SHANTI Bill, officially called the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India, replaces older laws including the Atomic Energy Act of 1962 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act of 2010. These older laws had restricted the growth of India’s nuclear sector.
Under the new law, private companies and joint ventures can now build, own, operate, and decommission nuclear power plants, provided they obtain a license from the government. This move opens up opportunities for private participation while supporting the expansion of India’s nuclear infrastructure.
However, certain sensitive activities, such as the mining of uranium and thorium, enrichment, isotopic separation, reprocessing of spent fuel, management of high-level radioactive waste, and production of heavy water, will remain under the exclusive control of the central government or government-owned entities.
The SHANTI Bill aims to modernize India’s civil nuclear sector, encourage private investment, and increase energy production, while ensuring safety and government oversight in critical nuclear operations. This reform is expected to boost India’s energy security and support sustainable growth in the coming years.
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