Environmental Legislations in

India
Prof. Sandeep Hegde
Environmental Policy In India
National Council for Environmental Policy and
Planning was set up in 1972 which was later
evolved into Ministry of Environment and
Forests (MoEF) in 1985.
MoEF and the pollution control boards (CPCB
i.e. Central Pollution Control Board and SPCBs
i.e. State Pollution Control Boards) together
form the regulatory and administrative core of
the sector.
2
Environmental Policy In India
The Policy Statement for Abatement of
Pollution and the National Conservation
Strategy and Policy Statement on
Environment and Development were
brought out by the MoEF in 1992.
The EAP (Environmental Action
Programme) was formulated in 1993 with
the objective of improving environmental
services and integrating environmental
considerations into development
programmes. 3
National Environment Policy, 2006

It the first initiative in strategy-formulation for

environmental protection in a comprehensive
manner.
It undertakes a diagnosis of the causative
factors of land degradation with a view to
flagging the remedial measures required in this
direction.
It recognizes that the relevant fiscal, tariffs and
sectoral policies need to take explicit account of
their unintentional impacts on land degradation. 4
Constitutional Provisions &
Environment
• Art 21 “Right to pollution free environment.”

• Art 48-A “ The state shall endeavor to protect

& improve the environment and to safeguard
the forests and wildlife of the country.

• Art 51-A(g) “duty of every citizen of India to

protect and improve the natural environment
including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife and
to have compassion for living creatures.”
Environmental Legislations
1. General
2. Forest and wildlife
3. Water
4. Air
General
• 1986 - The Environment (Protection) Act authorizes the central
government to protect and improve environmental quality, control and
reduce pollution from all sources, and prohibit or restrict the setting
and /or operation of any industrial facility on environmental grounds.
• 1989 - The objective of Hazardous Waste (Management and Handling)
Rules is to control the generation, collection, treatment, import, storage,
and handling of hazardous waste.
• 1998 - The Biomedical waste (Management and Handling) Rules is a legal
binding on the health care institutions to streamline the process of proper
handling of hospital waste such as segregation, disposal, collection, and
treatment.
• 2000 - The Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules,
2000 apply to every municipal authority responsible for the collection,
segregation, storage, transportation, processing, and disposal of
municipal solid wastes.
• 2002 - The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) (Amendment) Rules
lay down
such terms and conditions as are necessary to reduce noise pollution,
permit use of loud speakers or public address systems during night hours
(between 10:00 p.m. to 12:00 midnight) on or during any cultural or
religious festive occasion.
Forest and wildlife
• 1927 - The Indian Forest Act and Amendment, 1984, is one of the
many surviving colonial statutes. It was enacted to ‘consolidate the
law related to forest, the transit of forest produce, and the duty
leviable on timber and other forest produce’.
• 1972 - The Wildlife Protection Act, Rules 1973 and Amendment
1991 provides for the protection of birds and animals and for all
matters that are connected to it whether it be their habitat or the
waterhole or the forests that sustain them.
• 1980 - The Forest (Conservation) Act and Rules, 1981, provides for
the protection of and the conservation of the forests.
• 2002 - The Biological Diversity Act is an act to provide for the
conservation of biological diversity, sustainable use of its
components, and fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising
out of the use of biological resources and knowledge associated
with it.
Water
• 1974 - The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act establishes
an institutional structure for preventing and abating water pollution. It
establishes standards for water quality and effluent. Polluting industries
must seek permission to discharge waste into effluent bodies.
The CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) was constituted under this act.
• 1977 - The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act provides
for the levy and collection of cess or fees on water consuming industries
and local authorities.
• 1978 - The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Rules
contains the standard definitions and indicate the kind of and location of
meters that every consumer of water is required to affix.
• 1991 - The Coastal Regulation Zone Notification puts regulations on
various activities, including construction, are regulated. It gives some
protection to the backwaters and estuaries.
Air
• 1982 - The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution)
Rules defines the procedures of the meetings of the
Boards and the powers entrusted to them.
• 1982 - The Atomic Energy Act deals with the
radioactive waste.
• 1987 - The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution)
Amendment Act empowers the central and state
pollution control boards to meet with grave
emergencies of air pollution.
• 1988 - The Motor Vehicles Act states that all
hazardous waste is to be properly packaged, labelled,
and transported.
Environment Protection Act, 1986
• "environment" includes water, air and land
and the inter- relationship which exists among
and between water, air and land, and human
beings, other living creatures, plants, micro-
organism and property
• "environmental pollutant" means any solid,
liquid or gaseous substance present in such
concentration as may be, or tend to be,
injurious to environment;
• "environmental pollution" means the
presence in the environment of any
environmental pollutant;
Environment Protection Act, 1986
• "handling", in relation to any substance, means the
manufacture, processing, treatment, package,
storage, transportation, use, collection, destruction,
conversion, offering for sale, transfer or the like of
such substance;
• “hazardous substance" means any substance or
preparation which, by reason of its chemical or
physio-chemical properties or handling, is liable to
cause harm to human beings, other living creatures,
plant, micro-organism, property or the environment;
• "occupier", in relation to any factory or premises,
means a person who has control over the affairs of
the factory or the premises and includes in relation
to any substance, the person in possession of the
substance;
Requirements under EPA
• Sec 7- no person carrying on any industry, operation
or process shall discharge or emit or permit to be
discharged or emitted any environmental pollutant
in excess of such standards as may be prescribed
• Sec 8 – no person shall handle or cause to be
handled any hazardous substance except in
accordance with such procedure and after complying
with such safeguards as may be prescribed
Penalties under EPA
• Whosoever fails to comply with or contravenes any of the
provisions of this Act, shall be punishable with imprisonment
for a term which may extend to five years with fine which
may extend to one lakh rupees, or with both
• In case the failure or contravention continues, with additional
fine which may extend to five thousand rupees for every day
during which such failure or contravention continues after the
conviction for the first such failure or contravention.
• If the failure or contravention referred to above continues
beyond a period of one year after the date of conviction, the
offender shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term
which may extend to seven years.
Who is liable to be punished?
• Companies (sec 40)
• Govt. depts. (sec 41)
• Citizens (sec 24)
Cognizance

• Courts to take cognizance after sixty days of a

complaint made by someone in the prescribed
manner to the central govt. or the authority or
officer authorized.
• All relevant reports to be made available to
the complainant unless against public interest.