The SHANTI Act, 2025 Changes The Dynamics Of Atomic Energy Related Inventions In India

Introduction

The Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Act, 2025 (SHANTI Act) completely changes the scenario for patents relating to nuclear energy in India. Section 4 of the Patents Act, 1970 previously operated as an absolute bar and explicitly denied patent protection for any invention related to atomic or nuclear energy, which in turn created significant hurdles for private research and development in the sector. The SHANTI Act, 2025 replaces this blanket denial with a regime of supervised innovation as the Central Government now has the authority to grant patents for nuclear-related inventions, provided they are intended for peaceful uses.

The Changes

The old Section 4 of the Patents Act, 1970 stated that “No patent shall be granted in respect of an invention relating to atomic energy falling within sub-section (1) of section 20 of the Atomic Energy Act, 1962.” This was a categorical bar, preventing the grant of patents for any invention relating to nuclear energy.​

Section 38 of the SHANTI Act changes this rule. The new Section 4 of the Patents Act, 1970 now reads: “Patents may be granted for inventions relating to nuclear energy subject to the provisions of this Act and section 38 of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Act, 2025.” This allows patents to be granted for nuclear energy inventions, but only if they meet the conditions given in the provisions.​

Section 38(1) of the SHANTI Act provides that “The Central Government may grant patents for inventions which in its opinion are for the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and radiation.” The Central Government is therefore empowered by the statute to grant patents for inventions that are designed for ‘peaceful uses of nuclear energy and radiation’. The biggest challenge lies in determining what constitutes ‘peaceful uses of nuclear energy and radiation’. The SHANTI Act does not define this, thereby creating uncertainty. According to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), ‘peaceful uses’ are activities that are for civilian purposes rather than military weapons. This includes electricity generation from nuclear power plants, medical applications like cancer therapy and diagnostic imaging, industrial uses like food irradiation, agriculture, and research in science and technology.​

The potential scope for patentable subject matter under the new regime is broad and may include inventions related to:​

• Medical Treatments: New therapies using radiation to treat cancer and other diseases.
• Industrial Uses: Methods using radiation for sterilisation, processing materials, or other industrial purposes.
• Research Equipment: Devices and software that help scientists work with nuclear materials.

This scope is important because the SHANTI Act is not confined only to reactor-centric applications. The statute itself proceeds on the basis that nuclear energy and radiation have legitimate uses in healthcare, food, water, agriculture, industry, research and environment. Seen in that light, the provision under Section 38 may support innovation in a variety of areas.

What Cannot Be Patented:

I) Strategic Fuel-Cycle Activities:

Section 3(5) of the SHANTI Act expressly reserves certain activities exclusively for the Central Government or government-owned institutions. These reserved activities cannot receive private patent protection because they are considered too sensitive for private commercialisation. The items on this reserved list include:

• Uranium Enrichment: Increasing the concentration of uranium-235 required for nuclear fuel, to be undertaken only by the government.
• Mining and Extraction: Mining and processing of uranium and thorium, to be conducted only by government or government corporations.
• Heavy Water Production: Production and improvement of heavy water used in nuclear reactors, to be controlled by the government.
• Spent Fuel Management: Handling and storage of used nuclear fuel, including reprocessing to recover materials, to be performed only by the government.
• High-Level Radioactive Waste Management: Safe storage and disposal of highly radioactive waste from nuclear reactions, to be controlled by the government.

This reservation of core activities to the Central Government may also be seen as a stabilising feature of the new regime. The Central government also has the power to add more activities to this list in the future through official notifications.

II) Government-Designated Sensitive Inventions:

Apart from the reserved activities, Section 38 also excludes inventions that the government considers ‘sensitive’ or having ‘national security implications’. The challenge here is that the statute does not define what ‘sensitive’ means or list out specific criteria, which grants broad discretionary power to the government to declare an invention sensitive and refuse to grant it a patent, even if it may not fall into the reserved activities category.​

Under Section 38(7) of the SHANTI Act, the Central Government has the power to inspect any pending patent application at any time and can direct the Patent Controller to refuse the patent if it considers that the invention falls outside the scope of what may be allowed in the interests of national security. The SHANTI Act does, however, require that where such direction is issued, written reasons must be provided for the decision.

In Ceres Intellectual Property Company Limited v The Controller of Patents, Trademarks & Designs (Bombay High Court, 2018), the Court held that the Controller of Patents cannot refuse an application falling under Section 20(1) of the Atomic Energy Act merely on the basis of the directions from Department of Atomic Energy without providing substantive reasoned orders.

Pre-Disclosure Requirement

Section 38 also requires anyone who believes their invention to be related to nuclear energy to inform the Central Government about it before disclosing it to any third party, including potential business partners or investors. This requirement’s purpose is to give the government the first look at potentially sensitive inventions before they become public knowledge or spread to other foreign countries.

Conclusion

Section 38 transforms Indian patent framework concerning nuclear energy from total exclusion to selected inclusion of such innovations. The SHANTI Act is a significant and progressive step towards recognising and encouraging innovation in the nuclear sector. By opening the possibility of patent protection for peaceful uses of nuclear energy and radiation, the SHANTI Act has the potential to stimulate private research, technological collaboration and investment in areas such as healthcare, clean energy, agriculture and industrial applications. While certain concepts such as ‘peaceful use’ and ‘sensitive inventions’ may presently require greater clarity, such standards can evolve over time through policy guidelines, administrative practice and judicial adjudication. With effective implementation, the SHANTI Act can serve as an important catalyst for building a modern and innovation-driven nuclear ecosystem in India.

References

1. The Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy Bill, 2025.
2. 'Peace' on the Nuclear Front? Analysing the Upheaval in the Nuclear Energy Patents Regime through SHANTI Act
3. The SHANTI Act 2025 and India's Nuclear Patent Revolution.
4. Shanti Act, 2025 | Calibrated Liberalization in Nuclear Energy
5. Ceres Intellectual Property Company Limited v. The Controller of Patents
6. Nuclear Energy Bill Rationale (PIB Release)
7. Section 4 - Indian Patent Office

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