The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986: Complete Note on the Act, the Jan Vishwas Penalty Regime and the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986

The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (EPA) is the umbrella statute of Indian environmental law. It is a short Act of twenty-six sections, but it confers on the Central Government some of the widest powers in the statute book, and almost every major environmental regulation in India, from impact assessment to waste management, is made under it. Its enforcement scheme was fundamentally changed by the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023, which, with effect from 1 April 2024, replaced imprisonment for contraventions with monetary penalties imposed by adjudicating officers. This note covers the Act section by section in its current form, the old and new penalty schemes, and the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986.

1. Background and Object of the Act

1.1 The Stockholm Conference and the Act

The EPA was enacted under Article 253 of the Constitution to implement the decisions of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held at Stockholm in June 1972. Its preamble says so expressly.

Because the Act was made under Article 253, Parliament could legislate on matters such as land, water and public health that would otherwise fall in the State List. That is why a single central statute can govern all environmental media across the country.

1.2 The Bhopal gas disaster and environmental legislation

The immediate trigger was the Bhopal gas disaster of 2 and 3 December 1984, when methyl isocyanate escaped from the Union Carbide plant and killed and injured many thousands. The disaster exposed the gaps in the existing law. The Water Act (1974) and Air Act (1981) dealt with one medium each; neither dealt with hazardous substances, industrial accidents or land and soil; and there was no general authority with power to act quickly against any source of environmental harm. The EPA was passed in May 1986 and came into force on 19 November 1986.

1.3 Objects of the Act

The Statement of Objects and Reasons identified the purposes of the Act. They may be summarised as follows:

1. to implement the Stockholm decisions on the protection and improvement of the human environment;
2. to co-ordinate the activities of the various regulatory agencies under existing laws;
3. to create an authority or authorities with adequate powers for environmental protection;
4. to regulate the discharge of environmental pollutants and the handling of hazardous substances;
5. to provide for speedy response in the event of accidents threatening the environment; and
6. to provide deterrent consequences for those who endanger the environment, safety and health.

2. Definitions under Section 2

2.1 Environment, environmental pollutant and environmental pollution

These three definitions form a chain, analysed in detail in Topic 2. The definition of environment is inclusive and relational: it covers the three media, all living beings and property, and the inter-relationship among them. A substance is an environmental pollutant because of its concentration, not its nature, and potential injury ('may be, or tend to be') suffices. Environmental pollution is simply the presence of such a pollutant; actual damage need not be proved. The definitions give the Act a preventive character.

2.2 Handling of hazardous substance

The definition of handling is deliberately comprehensive. It covers the whole life-cycle of a substance, from manufacture to destruction, including storage, transport, use, sale and transfer. A hazardous substance is defined by its inherent properties (chemical or physico-chemical) or by the way it is handled, not by its concentration. Read together, the two definitions allow the law to regulate a dangerous chemical at every stage, which is the basis of the 'cradle-to-grave' approach of the Hazardous and Other Wastes Rules and the Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical Rules, 1989.

2.3 Occupier

The occupier is the person who has control over the affairs of the factory or premises, and, for substances, the person in possession of the substance. The definition fixes responsibility on the person who actually controls the activity, rather than on a nominal owner or an employee. It matters for the procedure for taking samples (Section 11), for duties on accidents (Section 9) and for obligations under the rules on hazardous substances and wastes. The Supreme Court's reasoning in J.K. Industries Ltd. v. Chief Inspector of Factories, (1996) 6 SCC 665, under the analogous definition in the Factories Act, that directors of a company can be treated as occupiers who cannot escape responsibility by nominating a subordinate, reflects the same policy.

3. Powers of the Central Government: Section 3

Section 3(1) is a general power. Section 3(2) lists fourteen specific matters that the measures may include, 'without prejudice to the generality' of sub-section (1). The list does not limit the general power; it illustrates it.

3.1 Measures for protection and improvement of environment

The fourteen matters in Section 3(2) can be grouped into six functions:

1. Co-ordination (clause (i)): co-ordination of actions by State Governments, officers and other authorities under the EPA, the rules, or any other law relating to the objects of the Act.
2. Planning (clause (ii)): planning and execution of a nation-wide programme for the prevention, control and abatement of environmental pollution.
3. Standard-setting (clauses (iii) and (iv)): laying down standards for the quality of the environment in its various aspects, and standards for emission or discharge of environmental pollutants from various sources. Different standards may be laid down for different sources having regard to the quality or composition of the emission or discharge.
4. Spatial restriction (clause (v)): restriction of areas in which any industries, operations or processes, or classes of them, shall not be carried out or shall be carried out subject to certain safeguards.
5. Safety (clauses (vi), (vii) and (viii)): procedures and safeguards for the prevention of accidents which may cause environmental pollution and remedial measures for such accidents; procedures and safeguards for handling hazardous substances; and examination of manufacturing processes, materials and substances likely to cause pollution.
6. Knowledge and inspection (clauses (ix) to (xiv)): investigation and research; inspection of premises, plant and processes and giving directions to prevent, control and abate pollution; establishing or recognising environmental laboratories; collection and dissemination of information; preparation of manuals, codes and guides; and such other matters as the Central Government considers necessary.

3.2 Co-ordination of government authorities

Clause (i) reflects one of the Act's main purposes. Environmental functions were scattered across the pollution control boards, forest departments, factory inspectors, municipal bodies and others. The EPA gives the Central Government power to co-ordinate their actions, including actions under other laws, so that regulation is coherent. The Central Pollution Control Board performs many of these functions in practice, and powers under the EPA have been delegated to it and to the State Boards under Section 23.

3.3 Environmental standards

Standards give the definition of 'environmental pollutant' its operational content. The Central Government lays down two kinds: ambient standards for the quality of the environment (clause (iii)), such as the National Ambient Air Quality Standards and ambient noise standards; and source standards for emission or discharge (clause (iv)), such as industry-specific effluent and emission limits and vehicle emission norms. They are prescribed in the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986 (Section 8 of this note), and their breach triggers Section 7.

3.4 Restriction of industrial areas

Clause (v), read with Rule 5 of the Environment (Protection) Rules, allows the Central Government to prohibit or restrict industries, operations and processes in specified areas. It is the legal basis of the eco-sensitive area notifications (Doon Valley, 1989; Dahanu, 1991; Aravalli, 1992), the eco-sensitive zones around protected areas, the Coastal Regulation Zone Notifications (1991, 2011 and 2019) and, together with Section 3(1), the Environmental Impact Assessment Notifications of 1994 and 2006.

3.5 Safeguards for prevention of environmental accidents

Clauses (vi) and (vii), drafted with Bhopal in mind, empower the Centre to lay down procedures and safeguards for preventing accidents and for handling hazardous substances. Under them the Centre has made the Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical Rules, 1989, the Chemical Accidents (Emergency Planning, Preparedness and Response) Rules, 1996, which set up crisis groups at the central, State, district and local levels, and the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016.

3.6 Constitution of environmental authorities: Section 3(3)

Section 3(3) has been used, often at the direction of the Supreme Court, to create specialised bodies:

• the Loss of Ecology (Prevention and Payment of Compensation) Authority for Tamil Nadu tanneries (Vellore Citizens' Welfare Forum, 1996);
• the Aquaculture Authority, after the Court restricted commercial shrimp farming in coastal areas (S. Jagannath v. Union of India, (1997) 2 SCC 87);
• the Central Ground Water Authority (1997), to regulate groundwater extraction;
• the Dahanu Taluka Environment Protection Authority (1996);
• the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority for the National Capital Region (1998), later replaced by the statutory Commission for Air Quality Management (2021);
• the National Ganga River Basin Authority (2009) and the later authorities for the rejuvenation of the Ganga (2016); and
• the Central Empowered Committee (2023), which began as a committee of the Supreme Court in the Godavarman litigation.

3.7 Appointment of officers: Section 4

Section 4 empowers the Central Government to appoint officers with such designations as it thinks fit for the purposes of the Act, and to entrust them with such powers and functions as it may deem fit. The officers are subject to the general control and direction of the Central Government or, if so directed, of an authority constituted under Section 3(3).

4. Power to Issue Directions: Section 5

Section 5 is the Act's most powerful enforcement tool. Its features are: a non-obstante clause, which gives directions priority over other laws; a very wide class of addressees ('any person, officer or any authority', including other government bodies); and an Explanation that removes any doubt that directions may be drastic.

4.1 Closure of industry

Closure is the most severe direction. It is used where an industry operates without required consents or clearances, persistently exceeds standards, or poses a serious risk to health or the environment. The Supreme Court has repeatedly relied on the power: in Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action v. Union of India (1996) it directed the Central Government to use Sections 3 and 5 to close the Bichhri units and recover remediation costs. Because closure affects livelihoods and investment, courts expect it to be proportionate and preceded by a fair procedure.

4.2 Regulation of industry

Short of closure, the Centre may prohibit a particular operation or process, or regulate it: for example by directing installation of pollution control equipment, change of fuel, reduction of production, monitoring and reporting, or furnishing a bank guarantee for compliance. Most directions in practice are regulatory rather than closure directions.

4.3 Stoppage of electricity or water

Clause (b) of the Explanation allows the Centre to direct the stoppage or regulation of the supply of electricity, water or any other service. The power is aimed at making closure effective: an industry that ignores a closure order can be physically prevented from operating by directing the electricity and water utilities, which are bound to comply. The Water Act (Section 33A) and the Air Act (Section 31A) confer similar powers on the pollution control boards.

4.4 Procedure: Rule 4 of the Environment (Protection) Rules

Rule 4 prescribes a procedure consistent with natural justice. A direction must be in writing and specify the nature of the action to be taken and the time within which it must be complied with. Ordinarily the person concerned is given a copy of the proposed direction and an opportunity of not less than fifteen days to file objections, which must be considered before the direction is confirmed, modified or withdrawn. Where there is a likelihood of grave injury to the environment, the prior notice may be dispensed with for reasons to be recorded in writing.

4.5 Appeal to the National Green Tribunal: Section 5A

Section 5A was inserted by the NGT Act, 2010. The appeal lies under Section 16 of the NGT Act, ordinarily within thirty days of the communication of the direction, extendable by the Tribunal for a further period not exceeding sixty days on sufficient cause. A further appeal lies to the Supreme Court under Section 22 of the NGT Act.

5. Rules, Prohibitions and Duties: Sections 6 to 9

5.1 Rule-making power to regulate pollution: Section 6

Section 6 empowers the Central Government to make rules in respect of all or any of the matters in Section 3. In particular, the rules may provide for: (a) standards of quality of air, water or soil for various areas and purposes; (b) maximum allowable limits of concentration of various environmental pollutants, including noise, for different areas; (c) procedures and safeguards for the handling of hazardous substances; (d) prohibition and restrictions on the handling of hazardous substances in different areas; (e) prohibition and restriction on the location of industries and the carrying on of processes and operations in different areas; and (f) procedures and safeguards for the prevention of accidents and for remedial measures. The general rule-making power is in Section 25, and all rules must be laid before Parliament under Section 26.

5.2 Prohibition on excess emission or discharge: Section 7

Section 7 is the central prohibition of the Act. It applies to any person 'carrying on any industry, operation or process', and covers both direct discharge and permitting discharge. Liability depends on exceeding the prescribed standards, so it is only as effective as the standards and the monitoring behind them. Its breach now attracts a monetary penalty under Section 14A.

5.3 Hazardous substances and procedural safeguards: Section 8

Section 8 regulates hazardous substances at every stage of handling. The prescribed procedures and safeguards are found in the Hazardous Chemical Rules (1989), the Hazardous and Other Wastes Rules (2016), the Rules of 1989 on genetically engineered organisms, and the waste rules for bio-medical, electronic and battery waste. Breach of Section 8 is treated as seriously as breach of Section 7 and attracts the same penalty under Section 14A.

5.4 Accidents and the duty to furnish information: Section 9

Section 9 deals with accidents. Where the discharge of an environmental pollutant in excess of the prescribed standards occurs or is apprehended because of an accident or other unforeseen act or event, the person responsible for the discharge and the person in charge of the place are bound to prevent or mitigate the pollution, to intimate the fact to the prescribed authorities, and to render all assistance when called upon. On receiving the information, the authorities must take remedial measures as early as practicable. The expenses incurred by any authority in taking such measures, with interest, may be recovered from the person concerned as arrears of land revenue. Rule 12 of the Environment (Protection) Rules prescribes the authorities and agencies to be informed.

6. Inspection, Sampling and Analysis: Sections 10 to 14

6.1 Power of entry and inspection: Section 10

A person empowered by the Central Government may, at all reasonable times and with such assistance as he considers necessary, enter any place for the purpose of performing any of the functions entrusted to him; examining and testing any equipment, industrial plant, record, register, document or other material object; determining whether the provisions of the Act, rules, orders or directions are being complied with; and conducting a search of any building in which he has reason to believe an offence has been or is being committed, and seizing any equipment, plant, record or other object that may furnish evidence of it or that is necessary to prevent or mitigate environmental pollution. Every person operating or in charge of an industry, operation or process must render all assistance. Searches and seizures follow the provisions of the criminal procedure code. Failure to assist, or wilful delay or obstruction, now attracts a penalty under Section 14B.

6.2 Taking environmental samples: Section 11

The Central Government or an authorised officer may take samples of air, water, soil or other substance from any factory, premises or other place for analysis. Section 11 lays down a mandatory procedure, because the result of the analysis is only admissible in evidence if the procedure is followed:

1. the person taking the sample must serve on the occupier or his agent a notice of his intention to have it analysed;
2. the sample must be collected in the presence of the occupier or his agent;
3. it must be placed in a container, marked and sealed, and signed by both the person taking the sample and the occupier or agent; and
4. it must be sent without delay to a laboratory established or recognised under Section 12.

If the occupier wilfully absents himself or refuses to sign, the sample may be sealed and signed by the person taking it alone, and the analysis remains admissible. The procedure protects the regulated person against tampering and gives the resulting evidence its reliability. Rules 6 to 8 of the Environment (Protection) Rules give the forms and details.

6.3 Environmental laboratories: Section 12

The Central Government may establish one or more environmental laboratories, or recognise existing laboratories or institutes, to carry out the functions entrusted to them under the Act. It may make rules prescribing their functions, the procedure for submitting samples, the form of the laboratory report and the fees payable. Rule 9 of the Environment (Protection) Rules sets out the functions of such laboratories.

6.4 Government analysts: Section 13

The Central Government may appoint or recognise persons with the prescribed qualifications as Government analysts for analysing samples sent to laboratories. Rule 10 prescribes their qualifications.

6.5 Reports of Government analysts: Section 14

Section 14 makes the analyst's report admissible without the analyst being called as a witness, which speeds up enforcement. It is admissible only if the sample was taken in accordance with Section 11. The report is evidence of the facts stated, and remains open to rebuttal.

7. Penalties: The Current Scheme after the Jan Vishwas Amendment

7.1 The shift from crime to civil penalty

As originally enacted, Section 15 of the EPA made every contravention of the Act, rules, orders or directions an offence punishable with imprisonment up to five years, or fine up to one lakh rupees, or both, with an additional fine up to five thousand rupees a day for continuing contraventions, and imprisonment up to seven years if the failure continued beyond one year. Sections 16 and 17 made companies and government departments liable for offences.

The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 (Act 18 of 2023), in force from 1 April 2024, replaced this criminal scheme with a system of monetary penalties imposed by an adjudicating officer, with an appeal to the National Green Tribunal and a dedicated Environment Protection Fund. The stated purpose was to decriminalise minor, technical and procedural defaults, reduce the burden on courts and promote trust-based governance and ease of doing business. Imprisonment survives only for failure to pay the penalty imposed.

7.2 The penalty provisions

7.3 Contravention of Sections 7 and 8: Section 14A

Excess emission or discharge (Section 7) and unsafe handling of hazardous substances (Section 8) are the most serious substantive violations, and attract the highest individual penalty band: a minimum of one lakh rupees and a maximum of fifteen lakh rupees, with fifty thousand rupees for every day of continuing contravention.

7.4 Contravention of Sections 9, 10 and 11: Section 14B

Failures relating to accidents and information (Section 9), obstruction of entry and inspection (Section 10) and non-compliance with sampling (Section 11) are procedural in character. They attract a penalty of not less than ten thousand rupees and up to five lakh rupees, with ten thousand rupees a day for continuing contravention.

7.5 Penalty for other contraventions: Section 15

The substituted Section 15 is a residuary provision. Any contravention of, or non-compliance with, the Act, the rules, or orders or directions issued under it, for which no penalty is separately provided, attracts a penalty of not less than ten thousand rupees and up to fifteen lakh rupees, with ten thousand rupees for every day of continuing contravention. Non-compliance with a direction under Section 5 falls here.

7.6 Liability of companies: Section 15A

Where a contravention is committed by a company, the company is liable to a penalty of not less than one lakh rupees and up to fifteen lakh rupees, with one lakh rupees for every day of continuing contravention. The higher band reflects the greater capacity of corporate polluters. Unlike the former Section 16, which made every person in charge of the company's business personally guilty of the offence, Section 15A fixes the monetary liability on the company itself. Personal criminal exposure of those in charge now arises mainly where the penalty is not paid (Section 15F).

7.7 Liability of Government departments: Section 15B

Where a Government department contravenes the Act, the Head of the Department is liable to a penalty equal to one month of his basic salary, unless he proves that the contravention was committed without his knowledge or instructions, or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent it. Where the contravention is attributable to the neglect of any other officer, that officer is liable to a penalty equal to one month of his basic salary, unless he proves that he exercised all due diligence to avoid it. The provision recognises that government departments, including municipal and public works bodies, are themselves significant polluters.

7.8 The adjudicating officer: Section 15C

The Central Government appoints adjudicating officers, not below the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government of India or Secretary to the State Government, to hold inquiries and impose penalties under Sections 14A, 14B, 15, 15A and 15B. The officer may call upon any person alleged to have contravened the Act, or having knowledge of the facts, require the production of records and documents, and must give a reasonable opportunity of being heard before imposing a penalty. In fixing the amount, the officer must have regard to factors that include:

• the population and area affected by the contravention;
• the frequency and duration of the contravention;
• the vulnerability of the persons affected;
• the damage caused or likely to be caused to the environment;
• the undue gain or advantage derived from the non-compliance; and
• such other factors as may be prescribed.

7.9 Appeal against environmental penalty: Section 15D

A person aggrieved by an order of the adjudicating officer may appeal to the National Green Tribunal within sixty days of receiving the order, after depositing ten per cent of the penalty imposed. The Tribunal may confirm, modify or set aside the order.

7.10 Environment Protection Fund: Sections 15E and 16 to 16B

All penalties imposed under Sections 14A to 15B are credited to the Environment Protection Fund (Section 15E), established by the Central Government under Section 16. The Fund also receives penalties under the Air Act and other prescribed sums. It is to be applied for purposes such as promoting awareness, education and research, and achieving the objects of the Act. Seventy-five per cent of the penalty amounts are to be allocated to the State Governments or Union territory administrations. Sections 16A and 16B provide for the Fund's accounts, audit by the Comptroller and Auditor-General, and an annual report to be laid before Parliament.

7.11 Failure to pay environmental penalty: Section 15F

If a person fails to pay the penalty or additional penalty within ninety days of its imposition, he is liable to imprisonment up to three years, or a fine up to twice the amount of the penalty, or both. This is now the only route by which imprisonment can follow a contravention of the EPA, and it is a genuine criminal offence triable by a court.

8. Cognizance, Citizen Complaints and Other Provisions

8.1 Cognizance of environmental offences: Section 19

Since the 2023 amendment, the principal 'offence' left under the Act is the failure to pay a penalty under Section 15F, and clause (aa) enables the adjudicating officer to prosecute it.

8.2 Citizen complaint: Section 19(b)

Clause (b) is the citizen suit provision, added in the original Act as a significant innovation. Any person may set the criminal law in motion after giving sixty days' notice to the Central Government or the authorised authority, in the manner prescribed by Rule 11 of the Environment (Protection) Rules. The notice gives the government the opportunity to act first; if it does not, the citizen may proceed. After the 2023 amendment the practical reach of Section 19(b) is narrower, since most contraventions are now dealt with by adjudication rather than prosecution; a citizen may, however, bring contraventions to the notice of the adjudicating officer and approach the NGT.

8.3 Bar of civil court jurisdiction: Section 22

No civil court has jurisdiction to entertain any suit or proceeding in respect of anything done, action taken, or orders or directions issued by the Central Government or any other authority or officer in pursuance of any power conferred by or in relation to its or his functions under the Act. The bar does not affect the writ jurisdiction of the High Courts and the Supreme Court, which is constitutional, or the jurisdiction of the NGT.

8.4 Delegation of powers: Section 23

The Central Government may, by notification, delegate its powers and functions under the Act (except the power to constitute authorities under Section 3(3) and to make rules under Section 25) to any officer, State Government or other authority, subject to conditions. Powers under Section 5 have, for example, been delegated to the Central Pollution Control Board and to State Governments and State Boards.

8.5 Overriding effect and interaction with other laws: Section 24

Section 24 has two parts. Sub-section (1) gives the EPA and its rules and orders overriding effect over inconsistent laws, which is why notifications such as the EIA and CRZ Notifications prevail over State town planning and land laws. Sub-section (2) avoids double punishment: where the same act is punishable under the EPA and another Act, such as the Water or Air Act, the offender is punished under the other Act. The EPA therefore operates as a gap-filling statute that yields, for punishment, to the specialised laws.

8.6 Other provisions

Section 18 protects action taken in good faith. Section 20 empowers the Central Government to call for information, reports or returns. Section 21 makes members, officers and employees of authorities under the Act public servants. Section 25 is the general rule-making power, and Section 26 requires every rule to be laid before each House of Parliament, which may modify or annul it.

9. The Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986

The Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986 are the principal rules under the Act. Their key provisions are:

• Rule 3: standards for emission or discharge of environmental pollutants, set out in the Schedules;
• Rule 4: procedure for directions under Section 5, including the fifteen-day opportunity to object;
• Rule 5: prohibition and restriction on the location of industries and processes in different areas, with a sixty-day public notice for objections to draft notifications (Rule 5(3)), which may be dispensed with in the public interest (Rule 5(4));
• Rules 6 to 10: procedure for taking and submitting samples, service of notice, functions of environmental laboratories and qualifications of Government analysts;
• Rule 11: manner of giving notice by a citizen under Section 19(b);
• Rule 12: furnishing information to authorities in case of excess discharge through accident;
• Rule 13: prohibition and restriction on the handling of hazardous substances in different areas; and
• Rule 14: submission of the environmental statement.

9.1 Environmental standards under the Rules

Rule 3 provides that, for the purposes of Section 7, the standards for emission or discharge of environmental pollutants from industries, operations or processes shall be as specified in the Schedules. It also allows the State Boards to specify more stringent standards than those prescribed, having regard to local conditions, and requires new units to comply from the start and existing units within the time specified.

9.2 Schedule I standards

Schedule I contains industry-specific standards for emission or discharge, for more than a hundred categories of industries and processes, such as thermal power plants, cement, sugar, distilleries, tanneries, fertilisers, pesticides, petroleum refineries, textiles, pulp and paper, and many others. Each entry fixes limits on parameters relevant to that industry, such as biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, suspended solids, pH, oil and grease, heavy metals, particulate matter and sulphur dioxide. Schedule I standards take precedence over the general standards for the industries they cover.

9.3 Standards for emission or discharge and ambient standards

The other Schedules fill in the remaining standards. Schedule VI contains the general standards for discharge of environmental pollutants, applying to industries not covered by specific standards, with separate limits for discharge into inland surface water, public sewers, land for irrigation and marine coastal areas. Schedule III sets ambient air quality standards in respect of noise, and Schedule VII contains the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, revised in 2009 to cover twelve pollutants. Standards for vehicle emissions are also prescribed. The ambient noise standards were later reinforced by the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000.

9.4 Environmental statement and environmental audit

Rule 14 requires every person carrying on an industry, operation or process that needs consent under Section 25 of the Water Act or Section 21 of the Air Act, or authorisation under the hazardous waste rules, to submit an environmental statement for each financial year ending on 31 March to the State Pollution Control Board by 30 September every year, in Form V. The statement covers water and raw material consumption, pollutants discharged compared with prescribed standards, hazardous and solid wastes generated and their disposal, pollution control measures, and measures for conservation of natural resources. The requirement was introduced in 1992 under the name 'environmental audit' and renamed 'environmental statement' in 1993.

A new layer of third-party verification was added by the Environment Audit Rules, 2025 (notified on 29 August 2025). They create a system of Registered Environment Auditors, certified and registered by an Environment Audit Designate Agency, who may verify compliance, conduct sampling and analysis, verify self-compliance reports and assess matters such as green credits and waste management. Auditors are assigned by random allocation to reduce conflicts of interest. The rules supplement, and do not replace, inspection by the Central and State Pollution Control Boards.

10. The Act Before and After the Jan Vishwas Changes

10.1 Evaluation

Supporters of the change argue that criminal prosecution under the old Section 15 was slow, rare and ineffective; that very few convictions were ever recorded; and that swift, graded monetary penalties imposed by an expert officer will deter more effectively, while the Environment Protection Fund will finance restoration. Critics respond that the threat of imprisonment was itself the deterrent against serious polluters; that a maximum of fifteen lakh rupees is small for a large industry; that adjudication by government officers may be less independent than a court; and that the change weakens the citizen suit under Section 19(b). A balanced answer notes that the new penalties operate alongside, not instead of, the polluter pays principle, environmental compensation by the NGT and the Supreme Court, and closure directions under Section 5, which remain fully available.

11. Related Topics and Provisions