CLND Act

The Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 (CLND Act) is the legal framework that channels liability for nuclear damage in India. Enacted on September 21, 2010, it makes the operator (the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited, NPCIL) strictly and exclusively liable for nuclear damage, subject to a cap. Section 6 caps the operator's liability at ₹1,500 crore per nuclear incident; beyond that, the Central Government covers up to 300 million SDRs (about ₹2,100-2,500 crore depending on exchange rate). The most debated provision is Section 17(b), which grants the operator a right of recourse against the supplier if the incident results from patent or latent defects in equipment or material, or substandard services. This diverges from the international norm under the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage (CSC), which channels liability exclusively to the operator. India ratified the CSC on February 4, 2016. To soften supplier concerns, the India Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP) was launched in June 2015 with ₹1,500 crore in cover.

• 1 Enacted September 21, 2010 in the aftermath of the Bhopal gas tragedy (1984) jurisprudence
• 2 Operator (NPCIL) is strictly and exclusively liable, capped at ₹1,500 crore under Section 6
• 3 Section 17(b) — right of recourse against supplier for defective equipment, material, or services
• 4 India ratified the Convention on Supplementary Compensation (CSC) on February 4, 2016
• 5 India Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP) launched June 2015 with ₹1,500 crore cover led by GIC Re
• 6 Affects foreign-vendor projects: Jaitapur (EDF, France), Kovvada (Westinghouse, US), Mithi Virdi
• 7 Vision 2047: 100 GW of installed nuclear capacity — supplier-side reform of CLND is widely seen as a precondition

Maharashtra's MoUs of May 2026 for ₹6.5 lakh crore in nuclear projects (including Jaitapur 9,900 MW EPR with EDF) must navigate Section 17(b) liability concerns to secure final investment decisions.