Lok Sabha Approves Bill to Open Nuclear Sector to Private Investment

Legislative Progress on Nuclear Energy Bill

On Wednesday, the Lok Sabha successfully passed the 2025 Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Bill, which is designed to allow private entities to participate in the civil nuclear industry.

This legislation was approved despite requests from various opposition parties to send it to a parliamentary committee for further review.

Before receiving presidential approval, the bill must also be ratified by the Rajya Sabha.

The proposed law aims to issue licenses to private firms, joint ventures, and government entities for the construction, ownership, operation, or decommissioning of nuclear power facilities.

Additionally, it seeks to eliminate a provision from the 2010 Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act that permitted nuclear plant operators to pursue legal action against suppliers if their equipment was implicated in an incident.

In 2008, the Bharatiya Janata Party had previously introduced a no-confidence motion against the then United Progressive Alliance government, citing the lack of such a provision as a concern.

After the enactment of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act in 2010, this clause was thought to hinder foreign investment in India's nuclear sector, particularly following the Indo-US nuclear agreement.

The recently passed bill also establishes a tiered compensation system for operators in the event of accidents, linking their liability to the thermal power capacity of the nuclear facility.

The 2010 legislation set a maximum liability cap for operators at Rs 1,500 crore.

This new bill aims to attract investments in the nuclear energy sector, supporting India's goal of achieving 100 gigawatts of nuclear power capacity by 2047.

During the discussion on the bill, Congress MP Manish Tewari questioned whether it was merely a coincidence that the law facilitating private sector involvement in nuclear energy coincided with the interest shown by the Adani Group in November to enter this field.

Samajwadi Party MP Aditya Yadav criticized the Union government for prioritizing this bill over existing laws that he claimed protected public interests, especially in light of the rising dollar value and the struggle to draw foreign investments.