Overview

• The Budget promised amendments to the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010, and the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 to let private companies build and operate nuclear plants, but no bills were introduced in the just-ended monsoon session.
• Congress leader Jairam Ramesh asked whether the government will table the measures in the Winter session and pressed for a bill establishing a regulator outside the atomic energy establishment.
• Ramesh argued that an independent watchdog is essential to attract private capital and warned that changes under consideration could undo the 2010 liability framework shaped by Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj and then–PM Manmohan Singh.
• Government targets remain expansive, with the Union Budget citing a 100 GW goal, a Rs 20,000 crore allocation and projections to more than triple nuclear capacity by 2031 from about 8.18 GW today.
• Industry leaders including Tata Power’s Praveer Sinha and L&T’s Anil Parab welcomed nuclear expansion but cautioned that policy uncertainty and even small design deviations can delay projects and raise costs, as NTPC’s Gurdeep Singh signaled the utility aims to deliver roughly 30% of the target.