*17th Feb, 2025* *News of the Day* *The India-US 123 Agreement of 2007 could finally achieve its full potential* *India-US 123 Agreement of 2007* Section 123 of the United States Atomic Energy Act of 1954, titled "Cooperation With Other Nations", establishes an agreement for cooperation as a prerequisite for nuclear deals between the US and any other nation. Such an agreement is called a 123 Agreement. To date, the U.S. has entered into roughly twenty-six 123 Agreements with 52 countries. Such an agreement was also signed with India. Subsequent to this agreement, India-US Nuclear took place. *Indo-US Nuclear Deal 2008* The most path-breaking part of Indo-US relationship was Indo-US nuclear deal. According to this deal, the United States will provide India access to nuclear fuel, reactor and technology subject to the waiver of Nuclear Suppliers Group. India was required to ensure that the nuclear supplies would be used only for civilian purposes. Consequently, India separated its nuclear facilities into military and civilian. The civilian facilities used were put under IAEA inspections to prevent any diversion of nuclear supplies for military purposes. As a result, India ratified the ‘Additional Protocol’ with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and civilian facilities were put under IAEA safeguards. *Roadblocks due to India’s Legislative framework* Though the Nuclear deal took place, still there are many roadblocks which hampered the nuclear cooperation between the two countries. *Atomic Energy Act, 1962:* This act allowed only to state-owned Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL), and some joint ventures between NPCIL and other state-owned companies such as NTPC Ltd and NALCO into nuclear power plant operations. *Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2020:* This act had sought to create a mechanism to compensate victims for a possible nuclear accident, and allocate liability and specify procedures for compensation. This act provided for the initial liability of nuclear operators in case of nuclear accident. However, the operators can further sue suppliers of nuclear reactors, if the accident took place due to fault of suppliers. These provisions have been cited as an impediment by foreign players such as GE-Hitachi, Westinghouse, and the French nuclear company Areva (Framatome) to investing in India, primarily on the grounds that the legislation channelised operators’ liability to equipment suppliers. *Proposed Changes in India’s Legislative Framework* In the recent Union Budget, government has mentioned its intentions to take up amendments to the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 (CLNDA) for nuclear reactors. The proposed changes to the Atomic Energy Act are aimed at opening the door wider to let the private sector into nuclear power plant operations, and to enable them to enter the Small Modular Reactor (SMR) sector as operators. The proposed changes to CLNDA act seek to cap the liability of nuclear suppliers in case of an accident. *Download the Complete Daily Current Affairs Pdf* https://www.prepmate.in/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/News-Juice-17th-February-2025.pdf