Reform or exploitation disguised as reform?
Abstract
India did not allow patents for technology for more than fifty years because of national security. The SHANTI Act 2025 is different; it lets people get patents for nuclear inventions. It still has rules to control technologies that are very sensitive. This article looks at the rules for nuclear technology, why they were made and the problems with the government having a lot of control over some nuclear inventions, specifically nuclear inventions.
Introduction
The US-based company made a high-strength nickel-cobalt-chromium alloy designed for ultra-supercritical boiler applications. This is an innovation, they applied for a patent in India for 8 years, but they didn’t get any answers on their application then the Patent Office referred the application to the Department of Atomic Energy, which refused it in a single unreasonable line. But you know what the reason is? The reason is that India didn’t give a patent for any nuclear technologies
For more than 50 years India has not allowed nuclear patents. They said it was because of national security. According to them, granting patents on nuclear inventions could hamper national security. So India did not give a patent for any innovation which has nuclear technology not to nuclear weapons, not to a radiation-based cancer treatment device, neither to a safety mechanism used in nuclear facilities. The law made no differentiation, nothing related to nuclear was patentable. If you ask what changed now, the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Act, 2025, was enacted which allows certain nuclear-related patents while still restricting nuclear technologies that are considered sensitive to national security.
Now the question is what is the SHANTI Act? And how it is related to nuclear patenting Well these questions are discussed below with the provisions and my analysis.
What is the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Act, 2025?
The SHANTI Act, 2025 is a clear discontinuity from previous historical approach. The law repeals the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, and amends Section 4 of the Patents Act to replace the existing regime with a more nuanced framework. Under the revised provision, patents may be granted for inventions relating to nuclear energy, subject to conditions provided in the SHANTI Act.
This marks a change that reflects a broader paradigm shift in the policy approach. Rather than viewing all nuclear technologies as equally sensitive, the law aims to make a distinction between their civilian and strategic use.
The act provides for a tripartite test to assess the patentability of any invention concerning nuclear affairs.
First, inventions associated with the peaceful use of nuclear energy and radiation may be patented. This will allow for innovations to be made in fields such as nuclear medicine, nuclear safety systems, the nuclear industry, and civilian nuclear energy.
Second, inventions associated with activities that are specifically reserved for the government or which are strategically important are non-patentable.
Third and most importantly, the Act provides that certain sensitive inventions may be considered to have been made or conceived by the Central Government. Accordingly, where an invention falls into this category, rights may vest in the State rather than in the individual inventor.
This is the part of the law that has generated the most debate. The government may deem such authority necessary to protect national interests, but innovators may see it as a source of uncertainty as to ownership and commercial exploitation.
What was wrong with the old law – section 4, an absolute ban
For over five decades, Section 4 of the Patents Act, 1970, read with Section 20 of the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, functioned as a blunt instrument, an absolute prohibition on patenting anything related to nuclear or atomic energy. The logic was straightforward: nuclear technology is sensitive so the government wanted full control. But the problem with the old law was that it didn’t differentiate between nuclear warfare and nuclear radiation which can be used for Health Care. Both were treated the same. This led to a decrease in national security stress but it led to decreased business in the health sector as it blocked out the innovators from patenting their innovations. Additionally, section 65 of the Patent Act 1970 authorised the central government to revoke the patent license if subsequently they found out relate to atomic energy contrary to Section 20 of the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 meaning even accidentally nuclear-adjacent patents could be revoked.
Why did it happen now?
The timing of the SHANTI Act is well-aligned with India’s long-term energy aspirations. The nation has set for itself an enormous ambition of greatly expanding its nuclear power capabilities by 2047. However, such ambitions require significant financial input, technology cooperation, and innovation from all parties involved
Patent protection is an important factor for attracting such participation. Companies are more inclined to invest in research, development, and technology transfer if there are legal mechanisms to protect their inventions. India’s opening up to nuclear patents is a sign of its readiness to make the nuclear sector more innovation-friendly.
Critical assessment
Well if we look at the earlier act, the Atomic Energy Act of 1962 it was too conservative restricting every nuclear technology to be patent. And now if we look at the new act, the SHANTI act, it gives a progressive approach by allowing patenting to those nuclear technologies that are not considered sensitive to national security.
But the problem is that the government has complete discretion to decide whether the particular nuclear technology is sensitive to national security or not. This keeps investors in serious uncertainty because if the government declares their invention as sensitive then the ownership would go to the government.
The second problem is that it is extraordinary that a provision says that it is conceived by the Central Government. In regular patent law, the inventor owns their invention. If the government considers your nuclear invention to be sensitive then under SHANTI the State becomes the deemed inventor. This is unknown in mainstream IP law and raises constitutional issues of property rights.
Conclusion
The SHANTI Act, 2025, signifies a paradigm shift in India’s nuclear patent regime from a blanket ban to an enabling environment that allows patenting of peaceful nuclear technologies while still restricting strategically sensitive inventions. The reform is necessary to promote innovation and attract investment into the nuclear sector but there are concerns about the extent of the discretion given to the government and the provision that certain inventions shall vest in the State. Ultimately, the success of the Act will depend on how well it manages to strike a balance between innovation and national security.
References
R.K. Dewan & Co., India Nuclear Patent Law Update: Impact, https://www.rkdewan.com/blogs/india-nuclear-patent-law-update-impact/ (last visited June 6, 2026).
KNALLP, Reimagining India’s Nuclear Patent Landscape: From Absolute Bars to Strategic Calibration, https://knallp.com/reimagining-indias-nuclear-patent-landscape-from-absolute-bars-to-strategic-calibration/ (last visited June 6, 2026).
Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Reforming Patentability in Nuclear Technology: Unpacking the Amendment to Section 4 of the Patents Act, 1970, Corp. Cyril Amarchand Blog (Feb. 2026), https://corporate.cyrilamarchandblogs.com/2026/02/reforming-patentability-in-nuclear-technology-unpacking-the-amendment-to-section-4-of-the-patents-act-1970/.
Prashant Reddy T., Peace on the Nuclear Front: Analysing the Upheaval in the Nuclear Energy Patents Regime through SHANTI Act, SpicyIP (Dec. 2025), https://spicyip.com/2025/12/peace-on-the-nuclear-front-analysing-the-upheaval-in-the-nuclear-energy-patents-regime-through-shanti-act.html.
Chambers & Partners, The SHANTI Act 2025 and India’s Nuclear Patent Revolution: A Practitioner’s Analysis, https://chambers.com/articles/the-shanti-act-2025-and-indias-nuclear-patent-revolution-a-practitioners-analysis (last visited June 6, 2026).
Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Act, 2025, § 38 (India).
Patents Act, No. 39 of 1970, §§ 4, 65 (India) (as amended).
Atomic Energy Act, No. 33 of 1962 (India) (repealed by SHANTI Act, 2025), https://www.indiacode.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/1413/1/A1962-33.pdf.