(This story originally appeared in on Jan 27, 2015)

NEW DELHI: India is set to ratify the Vienna convention on supplementary compensation (CSC) for nuclear damage after the nuclear liability hurdle was lifted on Sunday. The convention was signed in 2010. In four years, India has failed to ratify the convention to access a big international fund pool for compensation in case of nuclear damage. With the liability law becoming controversial, US and other partners told India that its law was incompatible with CSC When India and the US set up the contact group to resolve liability issues in September 2014, White House and the PMO kept oversight over the meetings. India also reached out to the US firms that could become suppliers.Indian and overseas companies have been skittish about being suppliers due to the almost unlimited liability they might have to take on.India said under Clause 35 of the liability law, victims can't sue for civil compensation under other laws barring the Nuclear Damage Claims commissions . That, Indian officials explained, would address concerns over Article 46 that spooked suppliers.Article 46 would continue to apply to operators. Operators would be liable to be sued under green laws, but it wouldn't apply to suppliers.The government has given a legal "memorandum" including the contact group discussions. That means India's assurances on limiting liability for suppliers and keeping claims under the CLNDA would be enshrined in a legal assurance.India hopes the insurance pool would work the concerns of Article 17B on supplier liability. The way it'd work, government sources say is this - Five public sector insurance firms will pool Rs 750 crore, the rest Rs 750 crore initially would be given as "soft loan" by government.Companies will buy insurance premium adding to the insurance pool. Indian firms will open a new chapter offering re-insurance in the nuclear sector.After Sunday's deal two things have happened - the US stepped off the bench on nuclear issues and persuaded to clear administrative arrangement that'd operationalize the deal. Second, companies like Westinghouse and GE now have a clearer path to investing in our nuclear business.