The Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) is the highest executive and policy-making institution for India's nuclear programme, functioning as the governing body of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE). It was first constituted on August 10, 1948, under a resolution of the Department of Scientific Research, with Dr. Homi Jehangir Bhabha as its first chairman, to organize research and promote the peaceful use of atomic energy. The AEC was reconstituted on March 1, 1958, following the creation of the DAE in 1954, which placed the entire atomic energy enterprise directly under the charge of the Prime Minister.
The AEC frames the overarching nuclear policy, sanctions large programmes, and coordinates the work of constituent institutions like the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL). The Secretary of the DAE serves ex officio as the Chairman of the Commission. Its statutory foundation is the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, which replaced the earlier Atomic Energy Act, 1948. The 1962 Act vests exclusive control over the production, development, and use of atomic energy in the Central Government. Specifically, Section 3 grants the Central Government wide powers over atomic energy, and Sections 14 and 15 establish a licensing regime for prescribed substances and equipment.
The Atomic Energy Act, 1962, was amended by the Atomic Energy (Amendment) Act, 2015, to permit joint ventures between public-sector undertakings like NPCIL and other government companies. A significant recent development is the introduction of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, 2025, in the Lok Sabha on December 15, 2025, which proposes to repeal the 1962 Act. The SHANTI Bill aims to allow licensing to non-government entities (excluding foreign companies) and joint ventures for activities like operating a nuclear plant, which were previously restricted to government entities. The AEC also connects to the independent regulatory body, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB).