Economy · 22 Aug 2026

SHANTI Act nuclear liability

Consider the following statements regarding India's nuclear liability framework:

  1. Under the SHANTI Act's draft rules, the liability cap for a reactor above 3,600 MWe is higher than the flat cap that applied to every operator under the 2010 law.
  2. Section 17(b) of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 exposed equipment suppliers to liability for latent defects, an exposure the SHANTI Act removes.
  3. The SHANTI Act's liability framework departs from the model followed under the Convention on Supplementary Compensation, which places liability exclusively on the operator.
AOnly one
BOnly two
CAll three
DNone of the above
This question is based on: The Rule That Quietly Decides Who Pays If a Reactor Ever Fails
Take this in full test mode → Instructions for 22 Aug 2026
About this question

Why in news

The DAE's draft rules under the SHANTI Act, released on August 14, 2026, introduce graded liability caps and a five-year expert review mechanism just as the underlying law faces a Supreme Court challenge over how far it shifts financial risk from equipment suppliers to operators and the public.

Why for UPSC

UPSC frequently sets traps where a reform is described as "departing from" an international norm when it actually aligns with it - this question tests whether the aspirant has correctly identified the direction of the SHANTI Act's alignment with the CSC.

Prelims summary

The SHANTI Act replaces the 2010 law's flat Rs 1,500 crore liability cap with a graded cap (Rs 100 crore to Rs 3,000 crore by reactor size) and removes supplier liability for latent defects, aligning India with the operator-only liability model under the Convention on Supplementary Compensation.

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