Similarly, Union Minister Singh also reiterated that as announced in the Budget 2025 announcement, the Government has announced that active private sector participation will be facilitated by undertaking amendments to Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage (CLND) Act 2010 and the Atomic Energy Act 1962
Union Minister Jitender Singh states the Atomic Energy Bill is in final stages, incorporating ministry suggestions and legal vetting to facilitate private sector participation.
The Draft Atomic Energy Bill 2025 is currently in its advanced stages of processing and preparation, with various specific aspects of the bill being suitably incorporated before being put up for approvals, Union Minister Jitender Singh said on Thursday in the Lok Sabha.
The government plans to introduce the Atomic Energy Bill-2025 in the ongoing Winter Session of Parliament.
The bill seeks to open up the tightly-controlled nuclear power sector for private players as India eyes to increase the share of atomic energy in its energy basket.
The government has set a target of generating 100 GW of nuclear power by 2047, a more than ten-fold increase from the present capacity of 8.8 GW.
While answering a question on the proposed amendments to Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 and the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, the Union Minister said that the draft Atomic Energy Bill is “currently in advanced stage of processing and preparation with final comments and suggestions from various Ministries being progressively incorporated along with concomitant vetting by Ministry of Law and Justice for legal compliances.”
“Policy directives of the Government with regard to specific aspects of the Bill are being suitably incorporated before being put up for approvals,” the Union Minister said in the answer.
“The exact modalities of the various aspects / concerns raised by The Hon’ble Member are being addressed in the amendments proposed and the position on these will be made clear once the draft gets vetted by the concerned ministries and is approved by the Government,” Singh informed the lower house, replying to a question asked by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor.
Similarly, Union Minister Singh also reiterated that as announced in the Budget 2025 announcement, the Government has announced that active private sector participation will be facilitated by undertaking amendments to Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage (CLND) Act 2010 and the Atomic Energy Act 1962.
In reply to a separate question, Singh said the completion of Rajasthan Atomic Power Project, RAPP-8 (700 MW) is delayed mainly due to extensive design reviews and incorporation of new upgrades as a result of thorough analysis of the Fukushima accident in Japan.
Another project, Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project, KKNPP-3&4 (2 x 1000 MW) has been delayed due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and non-availability of rock products due to stoppage of quarry operations by district administration, he said.
In addition, the financial crunch of contractors and the impact of Covid pandemic also contributed to delays in project execution, Singh said.
Earlier December 3, replying to a similar question, Singh had said that a meeting took place between Department of Atomic Energy and Russia’s Rosatom which focused on furthering bilateral cooperation in the field of nuclear energy.
“Attention was given to opportunities for localising equipment production in India, he said, adding that one of the new areas of discussion for cooperation included the construction of small modular reactors (SMRs) of Russian design in the country,” he said.
In the budget for 2025-26, the government allocated ₹20,000 crore for the design, development and deployment of small modular rectors, aiming to operationalise indigenously developed SMRs by 2033.
Under the Nuclear Energy Mission, funds have been allocated for research and development of the 200 MW Bharat Small Modular Reactor, which is in the advanced stage of obtaining administrative and financial sanction, the minister said.
According to the minister, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) has initated development and design works of 3 SMRs, including a 200 MWe Bharat Small Modular Reactor (BSMR-200); 55 MWe Small Modular Reactor (SMR-55), a 55 MWe Small Modular Reactor (SMR-55), and Up to 5 MWth High temperature gas cooled reactor meant for hydrogen generation.