Opinion | Why The SHANTI Bill Makes Modi Government’s Nuclear Energy Push Truly Futuristic |
The Union Budget 2025-26 marked a pivotal moment in India’s energy trajectory, positioning nuclear power as a cornerstone of our Viksit Bharat vision. With an ambitious target of 100 GW nuclear capacity by 2047—up from 8.18 GW in 2024—the Modi government signalled its intent to build a clean, reliable and self-reliant energy ecosystem. The Nuclear Energy Mission for Viksit Bharat, bolstered by a rs 20,000 crore allocation for Small Modular Reactor (SMR) R&D, promised indigenous Bharat Small Modular Reactors (BSMRs) and Bharat Small Reactors (BSRs), public-private partnerships and industrial decarbonisation.
Ten months later, the passage of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, 2025 in the Lok Sabha has transformed that promise into a concrete legislative foundation. By repealing the restrictive Atomic Energy Act, 1962 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010, the SHANTI Bill removes longstanding barriers that constrained private and foreign participation. It is the missing piece that makes PM Modi’s nuclear vision not just aspirational, but achievable.
India’s nuclear journey under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already been remarkable. Capacity has nearly doubled since 2014, new projects are underway across states, the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor is advancing, and strategic uranium discoveries at Jaduguda bolster fuel security. Yet scaling from 22.48 GW by 2031-32 to 100 GW by 2047 demanded path breaking policy intervention. Traditional........