Nuclear Energy Mission: target of 100 GW by 2047 and indigenous SMRs; SHANTI Act-2025 for private participation
India's nuclear-power roadmap combines a 2047 capacity target, indigenous Small Modular Reactors, and a new legal framework for private participation.
- The Union government is using the Nuclear Energy Mission to push nuclear power as a long-term low-carbon and energy-security option.
- The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board will have statutory status for independent oversight and enforcement under the SHANTI Act, 2025.
- The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre is developing indigenous reactor designs for power generation and hydrogen-production applications.
What happened
The Department of Atomic Energy has placed India's Nuclear Energy Mission at the centre of the country's long-term power strategy. The mission, announced in the Union Budget 2025–26, seeks to build 100 GWe of nuclear power capacity by 2047 and to support the broader goals of Viksit Bharat and net zero carbon emissions by 2070.
The mission also prioritises indigenous reactor development. The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre has been working on the 220 MWe Bharat Small Modular Reactor (BSMR-200), the 55 MWe Small Modular Reactor (SMR-55), and an up to 5 MWth High Temperature Gas Cooled Reactor (HTGCR) intended as a heat source for hydrogen-production pathways.
UPSC may ask how nuclear energy supports energy security and decarbonisation, what Small Modular Reactors add to India's reactor strategy, and how legal reform can balance private participation with safety, liability, and independent regulation.
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