The Union Cabinet on Friday approved a Bill aimed at opening India’s tightly regulated civil nuclear power sector to private participation, as the country targets 100 GW of atomic energy capacity by 2047. The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Cabinet is learnt to have cleared the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, which seeks to create a policy and regulatory framework to enable private investment in nuclear power generation while strengthening India’s long-term energy security.

The move follows Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s announcement in the Union Budget in February, where she outlined plans to open up the nuclear power sector to private players. As part of this push, Sitharaman also unveiled a Nuclear Energy Mission focused on research and development of small modular reactors (SMRs).

The mission carries an outlay of Rs 200 billion and aims to operationalise five indigenously developed SMRs by 2033. These smaller reactors are expected to play a key role in expanding nuclear capacity in a cost-effective and scalable manner, supporting India’s clean energy transition.