New Delhi/IBNS, March 31 -- In a landmark moment for the two-decade-old India-US civil nuclear deal, the US Department of Energy (DoE) has given the final approval allowing an American company to jointly design and build nuclear power plants in India, media reports said.

Though the overall framework of the India-US civil nuclear agreement was signed way back in 2007 by then prime minister Manmohan Singh and then US president George W Bush, it has taken nearly 20 years of negotiation, detailed discussions, legal and regulatory clearances to finally get the green signal to execute plans.

According to reports, the United States has granted Holtec International regulatory approval to design and build nuclear reactors in India.

The US Depar...