If nuclear disaster strikes, who pays? Inside India’s insurance blind spot

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.With global energy dependency rapidly shifting from conventional sources to nuclear power, it is natural to fear a Chernobyl or Fukushima-like incident anywhere in the world today. Human exposure to nuclear risks is also rising through genetic research in agriculture, radiation use in healthcare, and the increasing possibility of nuclear conflict.In such circumstances, a natural question arises: do our everyday insurance policies cover nuclear risks?As on date, none of the insurers in India provide coverage for nuclear exposure or related nuclear incidents.Whether personal, institutional, or commercial, almost all insurance policies exclude coverage for risks arising out of nuclear exposure or similar events.Apart from underwriting challenges due to lack of data, the core reason is structural: nuclear exposure is rarely individualistic.

It typically affects communities, towns, or larger populations and arises from the industrial use of fissile materials governed by specific legislation.In India, that legislation was the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage (CLND) Act, 2010.Under the CLND Act, nuclear risk is treated as a public liability risk rather than an individual one.To support India’s nuclear energy infrastructure, the government created the Indian Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP) on 12 June 2015. The INIP has a ₹1,500 crore capacity and was introduced by the General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC-Re) in partnership with eleven local non-life insurance companies.The pool addresses nuclear liability issues and promotes the construction of new nuclear power plants by offering insurance coverage for liabilities arising under the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage (CLND) Act, 2010.In