Governing The Atom for a Sustainable Future - Legal Challenges in India’s Nuclear Energy Transition

Abstract

India’s nuclear-energy transition marks a decisive shift in the country’s energy-governance paradigm, as nuclear power is increasingly positioned not merely as an instrument of energy security but as a component of a low-carbon and sustainable electricity system. Yet the proposed expansion from 8.78 GW of installed capacity towards 100 GW by 2047 raises a fundamental legal question: whether India’s regulatory architecture can accommodate accelerated nuclear liberalization without correspondingly weakening accountability for catastrophic and intergenerational risks. This research examines the evolving legal framework governing India’s nuclear transition, with particular emphasis on the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Act, 2025 (SHANTI Act), nuclear liability, regulatory independence, environmental clearance, public participation and radioactive-waste governance. It interrogates whether the pursuit of investment certainty and private-sector participation can be reconciled with constitutional protection of life and environmental integrity, particularly in light of the ongoing judicial scrutiny concerning statutory liability limitations, constitutional compensation and the institutional independence of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board. This research further contends that nuclear sustainability cannot be reduced to low-carbon electricity generation; it requires an enforceable allocation of financial, environmental and technological risks across the entire nuclear lifecycle. Against this backdrop, this research advocates a governance framework founded upon independent regulation, meaningful community participation, comprehensive financial security, lifecycle accountability and technology-neutral safety standards. It argues that India’s nuclear transition will be legally sustainable only if the imperative of energy security is subordinated to neither constitutional accountability nor intergenerational justice.