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Critical Assessment of Existing Environmental Legislation and Policies in

India, Its Benefits, Limitation, and Enforcement

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-58538-3_148-1

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Critical Assessment of Existing
Environmental Legislation and Policies
in India, Its Benefits, Limitation,
and Enforcement

Anirban Dhulia and Rajiv Ganguly

Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Recent Legislative Measures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
The Environment Protection Act, 1986 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
National Environment Appellate Authority Act, 1997 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Water (Protection and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Forest and Wildlife Acts, 1972 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 (Jayakumar 1987) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
National Environment Tribunal Act, 1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Cross-References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Abstract
The problem of environmental pollution has attained international dimension due
to rapid industrialization and urbanization, increased population growth, and
overexploitation of natural resources leading to disruption of ecological balances.
The problem is more pronounced and significant for developing countries like
India. In this context, a regulatory framework is necessary for protection of
existing enriched environmental system and integration of environmental realities
while making decisions on economic issues and activities related to urban
growth. Development of a comprehensive environmental policy in India poses

A. Dhulia · R. Ganguly (*)

Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Himachal Pradesh,
Waknaghat, India
e-mail: rajiv.ganguly@juit.ac.in

# Springer International Publishing AG 2018 1

C. M. Hussain (ed.), Handbook of Environmental Materials Management,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-58538-3_148-1
2 A. Dhulia and R. Ganguly

several challenges including regulatory framework covering all aspects of envi-

ronmental protection, modification of existing legislation for better achievement
of its objectives, and establishment of governing boards for implementation of the
framed and modified legislation. Other concerns involve political, social, and
economic compromises made for development of infrastructure utilizing
eco-friendly technology, implementing our international obligations through
national legislation and creating awareness on other environmental issues. The
Indian Government introduced two articles 48A and 51A in the Constitution of
India in 1976 to tackle the issues of environmental pollution. While article 48A
empowers the state to protect forest and wildlife of the country Article 51A gives
powers to the citizens of the country for improvement and protection of the
environment. Hence, the powers of the two articles combined as per the consti-
tutional guidelines give sufficient power to both state and citizens for protection
of the environment. In this context, the Environmental Protection Act was
envisioned which subsequently led to enactment of different acts including
Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974; the Water (Prevention
and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977; the Air (Prevention and Control of
Pollution) Act, 1981; the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986; Public Liability
Insurance Act, 1991; the National Environment Tribunal Act, 1995; the Wildlife
(Protection) Act, 1972; and the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980. The enactments
of the acts show that India had taken a definitive approach for environmental
protection but the biggest lacunae observed was the enforcement of these acts
strictly in case of reported violations. Hence, there is an immediate need to ensure
proper enforcement of the constitutional mandate and other environmental laws
as the effectiveness of those policies is diluted due to nonenforcement. The book
chapter discusses the existing Indian environmental legislation and policies, their
suitability and drawbacks in the present context, proposed changes to such policy,
and methods on effective implementation of these legislation.

Keywords
Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act · Water (Prevention and Control
of Pollution) Cess Act · Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act ·
Environment (Protection) Act · Public Liability Insurance Act · National
Environment Tribunal Act · Wildlife (Protection) Act · Forest (Conservation) Act

Introduction

The need for conservation and sustainable use of natural resources to protect the
environment and preserve the natural resources of the country had been introduced
in the constitutional, legislative, and policy framework with active intervention of
judiciary in the earlier decades. After the UN conference on the human environment
at Stockholm in 1992, a structured framework of environmental legislation was
developed relating to environmental protection (Environmental Protection Authority
2016; Environmental Law & Practice Review 2011; Jayakumar 1987). In this
Critical Assessment of Existing Environmental Legislation and Policies in. . . 3

context, the National Council for Environmental Policy and Planning was
established as an authority for environmental protection under the Department of
Science and Technology in 1972, which is presently known as the Ministry of
Environment and Forest (MoEF) (Jayakumar 1987). MoEF acts as an advisory
body in all matters relating to protection of environment and its improvement, but
the responsibility for execution remains with the various ministries and government
agencies. The Government of India declared the Policy Statement for Abatement of
Pollution in 1992 which states “This statement declares the objective of the govern-
ment to integrate environmental considerations into decision-making at all levels.”

Recent Legislative Measures

In the last two decades, the Central Ministry of Environment has undertaken several
steps to provide legal and institutional empowerment for protection of environment
by making legislative guidelines, notification of standards, and delegation of powers,
for hazardous chemical management, identification of agencies, and setting up of
environmental councils in few states. In the delegated legislation areas, effluent and
emission standards for 24 industries were specified and under the environment act
general standards for effluent discharge and for noise pollution were prescribed. To
check that the effluents met the prescribed standards, about 70 environmental labo-
ratories were established across the country for the analysis of the effluent water and
air samples. A gazette notification on environmental audit was issued, whereby
under the Water Act, 1974, and the Air Act, 1981, carrying out an environment
audit was made compulsory for all industries requiring environmental clearance.
Further, in 1996, the Central Government framed the Chemical Accidents (Emer-
gency, Planning, Preparedness, and Response) Rules to Supplement the Hazardous
Chemical Rules of 1989 and in 1998 Bio-Medical Waste (Management and Han-
dling) Rules were issued for biomedical waste regulation.
In particular, for establishment of an industry within the state and to obtain
consent from the State Pollution Control Board, the Central Government enacted
the Prevention and Control of Pollution Rules, 1999, requiring for all industries to be
listed in the Environment Act, 1986. Further, the Government of India established
the Recycled Plastic Manufacture and Usage Rules in 1999 prohibiting vendors
packing foodstuff in recycled plastic bags or containers; instead foodstuff is directed
to be sold in plastic bags which must be made of virgin plastic. It was mandated that
municipal authority will be responsible for collection, segregations, storage, trans-
portation, processing, and disposal of municipal solid wastes following Municipal
Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000, which has been updated in
2016. The State Pollution Control Boards have been made responsible for monitor-
ing the compliance of the standards regarding groundwater, ambient air quality, and
quality of compost within their state boundary premises. Further, the Noise Pollution
(Regulation and Control) Rules, under 1986 Environment Protection Act, was
established by the Central Government in the year 2000 prescribing the ambient
air quality standards for different zones (residential, commercial, industrial, and
4 A. Dhulia and R. Ganguly

silence). Similarly, the Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Rules,
2000, was enacted by the Central Government under the Environment Protection
Act. The rule focused on mandatory registration of manufacturers, dealers, and users
of ozone-depleting products like halons, radons, CFCs, carbon tetrachloride (CCl4),
and similar other compounds. Establishment of such legislation effectively covers a
diverse field including noise, hazardous waste, hazardous microorganisms, environ-
ment impact assessment, and others. Such legislation also improve the functioning of
the existing monitoring agencies and formation of new regulatory bodies wherein
required.

The Environment Protection Act, 1986

In India though many of legislation are meant to protect the environment from
pollution, the enforcement of such legislations has not so far been considered in
totality. Under Article 253 of the Indian Constitution, the Environment (Protection)
Act, 1986, was enacted to implement the decisions made at the United Nations
Conference on Human Environment held at Stockholm, 1972, and was expected to
provide a blueprint for a progressive policy for protecting the ecosystem. The
Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, was enacted to provide the protection and
improvement of the quality of environment in order to prevent, control, and abate
environmental pollution. As a direct consequence of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, the
Act came into existence and seeks to supplement the laws existing on control of
pollution by enacting a general legislation for environmental protection and to fill the
gaps in regulations of major environmental hazards. However, the Act has been
invoked in very few cases. The Act is a special law and extends to the whole of India.
The term “environment” has been defined to include water, air, and land, and the
interrelationship existing amongst water, air, and land and human beings, other
living creatures, plants, microorganism, and property. The definition is wide enough
to include within its purview all living creatures including plants and microorganism
and their relationship with biosphere. The Act has given vast powers to the Central
Government to take measures with respect to planning and execution of a nationwide
program for prevention, control, and abatement of environmental pollution. It
empowers the government to lay standards for the quality of environment, emission,
or discharge of environmental pollutants; for regulation of industrial locations; to
prescribe procedure for managing hazardous substances, to establish safeguards for
preventing accidents; and to collect and disseminate information regarding environ-
mental pollution. The Act can be said to be an “umbrella” legislation designed to
provide a framework for Central Government, and coordination of the activities of
various central and state authorities established under previous laws, such as the
Water Act and the Air Act. Thus, as regards air pollution, apart from the preventive
or controlling measures under the Air Act, the residue protection of air would come
within the Environment Act. According to the Preamble, the objective of the
Environment Act is “. . . to provide for the protection and improvement of environ-
ment and for matters connected therewith.”
Critical Assessment of Existing Environmental Legislation and Policies in. . . 5

Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986

The rule-making powers envisaged under the Environment Protection Act are quite
exhaustive and have wide coverage and varied dimensions. The general rule-making
power is conferred on the Central Government for carrying out the provision of the
Act. The Department of Environment, Forests and Wildlife of Central Ministry of
Environment and Forests has been entrusted with the responsibility for making these
rules for implementation within the Environment Act. The Department has adopted
specific industry standards for effluent discharge and has prescribed general effluent
standards for other water polluters. Certain central and state officials are designated
to carry out specific duties under the Act and for testing the samples of air or
emissions obtained specific laboratories are also designated.
Under the Environment Act, the Central Government is empowered to establish
standards for the quality of the environment in its various aspects that include
maximum allowable concentration of various environmental pollutants for different
areas and could be based on ambient levels of pollutants sufficiently low to protect
the public health and welfare. To ensure that ambient levels are achieved emission or
discharge standards for particular industries could be adjusted as per the require-
ment. The Environmental (Protection) Rules, 1986, do allow the state or central
authorities to establish stricter emission/discharge standards, based on the recipient
system quality than the present uniform and existing standards.
Further, the rules state the factors, which the Central Government should consider
while it prohibits or restricts the location of any industry or carries on processes and
operations in different areas. The climatic features, topography of the area and the
biological diversity, as opined by the Central Government needs to be preserved and
should be compatible environmentally within useful proximity to human settlement
are some of the important factors to be considered. However, for areas that are not
notified, the public has no provision to challenge the location of an industry. The
provided safeguards for taking and sending samples for analysis are in recognition of
the right of a fair process of law. The function of environmental laboratories,
government analyst’s qualification, and the manner of giving notices are also laid
down by the rules. The Environment Act and Rules give powers to the Central
Government which can be used to implement newer concepts like Environment
Audit, EcoMark, Environment Impact Assessment, and other such suitable
measures.

National Environment Appellate Authority Act, 1997

The National Environment Appellate Authority (NEAA) Act was established in

1997 under Article 123 wherein it has the power to hear appeals in respect to those
restricted areas in which an industry was situated and is governed by the Environ-
ment (Protection) Act, 1986, and it came into existence on January 1998. This
replaced the above-mentioned legislation. The inaugural chairman of NEAA was
Justice J.S. Verma who mentioned that it was a very sound decision of the
6 A. Dhulia and R. Ganguly

government and its implementation will bring the expected results within a very
short timeframe. It was promulgated that from the date of its establishment no civil
court or other higher authority shall have the right to consider an appeal in any
respect of the matter of authority under the purview of this act. The main office of the
Appellate is located in Delhi but the appeal process can be made and heard at any
location in India. The hearing authority shall be comprised of Chairperson, a Vice-
Chairperson, and such other members (appointed by President) not exceeding three
as the Central Government may deem fit as per Section 4. It was framed that the
Chairperson should have served as judge of the Supreme Court, or the Chief Justice
of a High Court. Further, a person to be appointed as Vice-Chairperson should have
held the post of a Secretary to the Government of India for a minimum of 2 years,
and must have sufficient expertise in administrative, legal, managerial, or technical
aspects of environment-related problems. Under Section 5, an appointed member
must possess sufficient professional knowledge or practical experience in the areas
pertaining to conservation, environment management, law, or planning and devel-
opment. The Vice-Chairperson should not be a bureaucrat as it may influence his or
her decision regarding environmental concerns. Under the aegis of the Act an appeal
can be launched by the aggrieved personnel if it is believed that no operating unit or
industry should be set up in protected areas but environmental clearance has been
provided in such cases that may file their appeal within 30 days of the order.
However, there remain provisions in the Act to consider special circumstances if
the appeal is filed after the mandatory 30-day period. Once the concern petition or
appeal has been filed, the NEAA must resolve the issue within 90 days of the filing of
the initial petition date. A further 30 days’ extension may be taken under special
circumstances under the provisions of Section 11 of the Act. It is important to note
that the decision of NEAA is independent of the regulations of Code of Civil
Procedure 1908 but should abide by natural justice system, and follow specifically
the rules of the NEAA and any other similar rules enacted by the Government of
India. Further, the NEAA has the provisions of acting as its own regulatory body.
Though the NEAA is independent of Code of Civil Procedure it has equivalent
powers (Section 12) with guilty party being punishable by maximum of 7 years in
prison with affine of INR one lakh or both (Section 19). If the misdeed has been
conducted by a company or a manufacturing unit then all personnel involved in
running the company or the unit will be deemed guilty and will be punished as per
the offence. Nonetheless an executive shall not be held liable if he or she can
sufficiently prove that the offence was carried out without his or her prior knowledge
and information and thereby may be freed from any prosecutable action.
The establishment of NEAA has been well received by both the people and the
industrial community. It is expected that related to environmental concerns and
disputes the Authority will act swiftly, unbiased, and deliver its judgement within
the mandated timeframe. Further, in certain states like Andhra Pradesh, the State
Pollution Control Board has also designated the Authority to play an advisory role
for those judgements passed to the government from High Court or Supreme Court
related to environmental issues. The term “person” in the provision of the Act has a
wide scope of its application. Finally, it is the duty of the committee to ensure its
Critical Assessment of Existing Environmental Legislation and Policies in. . . 7

independent working and provide confidence amongst all parties of its unbiasedness
regarding the appeal. Importantly, it can delegate matters wherein the environmental
clearance has already been mandated and not for those wherein the EC is under
consideration or directly refused.

Water (Protection and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

India’s profound deterioration in water quality has resulted due to rapid industrial-
ization urbanization and green revolution. India’s Water (Protection and Control of
Pollution) Act, 1974, was the first major water legislation, passed by the Parliament
to provide legislative support for prevention of water pollution. The prevention and
control of water pollution and maintaining or restoring of wholesomeness of water
(in the streams of well or on land) are the major objectives of this Act. The Act vests
regulatory authority in the state boards empowering establishment and enforcement
of effluent standards for factories that discharge pollutants directly into water bodies.
A central board performs the same functions for union territories and coordinates
activities amongst the different states (Agarwal 2005). Sewage and industrial efflu-
ent discharges are controlled by the board for approval, rejection, or conditioning
applications for consent to discharge. By advising state governments on appropriate
sites for new industry the state boards take steps to minimize water pollution. Power
is granted to the board to ensure compliance with the Act by including the power of
entry for examination, testing of equipment, and other purposes and power to take
the sample for the purpose of analysis of water from any stream or well or sample of
any sewage or trade effluents. Prior to its amendment in 1988, enforcement under the
Water Act was achieved through criminal prosecutions initiated by the boards and
through applications to magistrates for inculcations to restrain polluters. The amend-
ment made on the year 1988 strengthened the implementation of the provisions in
the Act. Now, a board may shut a default industrial plant or withdraw its power or
water supply by an order from administration; the penalties are even more stringent,
and a citizen’s suit provision supports the enforcement machinery.

The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977

The Water Cess Act was passed to meet the expenses of the Central and State Water
Boards. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977, aims to
provide levy and collection of a cess on water consumption by persons carrying
certain industries and local authorities to augment the resources of the central board
and the state boards constituted for the prevention and control of water pollution.
The objective is to repay money for the activities which lead to pollution and thereby
the polluter must bear the expenses of the remediation of the pollution such caused.
The economic incentives are created for pollution control and require local author-
ities and certain designated industries to pay a cess (tax) for water consumption.
These revenues are used for implementation of the Water Act. After deducting the
8 A. Dhulia and R. Ganguly

expenses of collection the Central Government pays the central board and the states
such sums, as it deems necessary to enforce the provisions of Water Act. A rebate of
about 70% is given to a polluter on the applicable cess upon installing effluent
treatment equipment in order to encourage capital investment in pollution control.
Furthermore 1974 Water Act also prohibits the use of any stream or well (the
expression “stream” includes rivers) for disposal of polluting matter, etc.

Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981

Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, referred to as Air Act, 1981,
was enacted to provide legislative support for prevention and control of air pollution.
The Act aims to prevent, control, and reduce air pollution; besides this, Environ-
mental (Protection) Act, 1986, also covers some other aspects of air pollution. The
United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held at Stockholm in June
1972 laid the platform for the drafting of the Air Act in India. Subsequently, the
Parliament enacted the nationwide Air Act named as The Air (Prevention and
Control of Pollution) Act of 1981. The Act was further amended in 1987. The
main objectives of this Act are to improve the quality of air and to prevent, control,
and abate air pollution in the country.
The Air Act’s framework is similar to the one created by its predecessor, the
Water Act of 1974. To enable an integrated approach to environmental problems, the
Air Act expanded the authority of the central and state boards established under the
Water Act to include air pollution control. States not having water pollution boards
were required to set up air pollution boards. Under the Act, all industries operating
within designated air pollution control areas need to obtain consent from the state
boards. After consulting the central board the states are required to prescribe
standards for industry and automobile emission and its ambient air quality standards.
The Air Act granted power to the board to ensure compliance with the provisions of
the Act for which powers were bestowed to the board including the power of entry
for examination, testing of equipment and other purposes like analysis of air or
emission from any chimney, flyash or dust from any other outlet in such manner as
may be prescribed.
The Air Act has been designed to prevent, control, and abate air pollution.
Industries, automobiles, domestic fires, and others are the major sources of air
pollution. The polluted air adversely affects heart and lung and actively reacts with
blood’s hemoglobin. According to Roggar Mustress, the American scientist, air
pollution causes mental tension which leads to increase in crimes in the society.
The Air Act defines an air pollutant as any “solid, liquid or gaseous substance
including noise present in the atmosphere in such concentration as may be or tend
to be injurious to human beings or other living creatures or plants or property or
environment.” The Act provides that no person shall without the previous consent of
the state board establish or operate any industrial plant in an air pollution control
area. The Central Pollution Control Board and the State Pollution Control Board
constituted under the Water Act shall also perform the power and functions under the
Critical Assessment of Existing Environmental Legislation and Policies in. . . 9

Air Act. The main functions of the Boards under the Air Act are to improve the
quality of air and to prevent, control, and abate air pollution in the country. The
permission granted by the Board may be a conditional one wherein stipulations are
made in respect of raising of stack height and providing various control and
monitoring equipment. It is expressly provided that persons carrying an industry
shall not be allowed to emit air pollutants in excess of laid-down standards by the
Board.
Noise has been taken as an air pollutant within the meaning of the Air Act. Sound
becomes noise when it causes annoyance or irritates. Many sources of noise pollu-
tion are there like noise from factories, vehicles, and use of loudspeakers recklessly
in marriages, religious ceremonies, and religious places. Crackers on festivals,
winning of teams in the games, and other such occasions cause not only noise
pollution but also air pollution. The Air Act helps in prevention and control of
these pollutions. Though the Air Act is comprehensive in its contents relating to
prevention and control of air pollution from industrial pollutants, its defined scope
even after major amendments in 1987 remained inadequate, as it doesn’t include in
its complete range the pollution through the medium of air. Hence, noxious odors
emitted by some industries (e.g., breweries and leather industries) are not covered
under the Act; however, noise pollution through medium of air is covered.
The constitution of Boards is not free from drawbacks under the Act. Air
pollution prevention and control has been given as an additional or secondary duty
of the (Water) Pollution Boards. The importance of control of air pollution is
underrated, as there remains a tendency to provide greater importance to primary
function. Further, the Air Act similar to Water Act does not provide for an integrated
approach to check pollution, as the local and municipal bodies which are armed with
statutory powers for ensuring environmental purity have not been integrated into the
national- and state-level enforcement machinery. Each state government is granted
discretion to designate particular areas as “air pollution control areas” within which
the provision relating to regulations of pollutant discharges through permit system is
to be applicable. It seems that polluters located outside such air pollution control
areas cannot be subjected to regulations of pollution or be prosecuted for violations
of standards laid by the state boards. The improvement on implementation of the Act
has to be looked upon. Rules have been framed under the Air Act, 1981, viz. the Air
(Prevention and Control of Pollution) Rules, 1982, provided for the procedure on
transaction of business of the Board and its committees; temporary association of
persons with the central board (for assistance or advice); and budget, account, and
annual report of the central board. Rules in other areas (viz. taking of samples of
emissions or air) are required to be framed in order to overcome the subjective
satisfaction of the board. Thus, the Air Act is a good piece of legislation and has
shown the right path to be pursued in the direction of prevention and control of air
pollution.
10 A. Dhulia and R. Ganguly

Forest and Wildlife Acts, 1972

India is one of the few countries, which had a forest policy since 1894. In 1972, the
Wildlife (Protection) Act was enacted by the Parliament. The Act was enacted with a
view to provide for the protection of wild animals, birds, and plants. The Act
prohibits hunting of animals and birds as mentioned in the schedules. The Act also
prohibits picking, uprooting, damaging, destroying, etc. any specified plant from any
forest. The Act provides for State Wildlife Advisory Board to advise the state
government in formulation of the policy for protection and conservation of the
wildlife and specified plants, and in selection of areas to be declared as sanctuaries,
national parks, etc. Director of Wildlife Preservation with Assistant Directors and a
Chief Wildlife Warden with other wardens and their staff administer the Act.
The Wildlife Act provides for state wildlife advisory boards, regulating wild
animal and bird hunting; establishing sanctuaries and national parks; regulating
trade in wild animals, animal products, and trophies; and judicially imposing
penalties for violating the Act. Harming endangered species is prohibited throughout
India. Hunting species, like those requiring special protection, big game, is regulated
only through licensing. A few species classified as vermin may be hunted without
restrictions. In 1982, an amendment to the Act introduced a provision of permitting
the capture and transportation of wild animals for the scientific management of
animal population. India is also a signatory to the Convention of International
Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES, 1976). Under this, export
or import of endangered species and their products is governed by the conditions and
stipulations laid down therein.

The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980

Forest Act, 1927, is one of the many surviving colonial legislation. It was enacted to
consolidate the law related to forest, the transit of forest produce, and the duty to be
levied on timber and other forest produce. The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980,
provides that no forest destruction or forestland usage for non-forest purposes can be
permitted without the previous approval of the Central Government. The conserva-
tion of forests includes preservation and protection of existing forests along with
reafforestation. A continuous and integrated process to replace the vanishing forest
reafforestation should be done regularly. The Act is enforced strictly for the benefit
of the general public and intended to save a laudable purpose. Though there are
several legislation on environment protection in India, the enforcement of these
legislation has been far from satisfactory. What is exactly needed is the effective and
efficient enforcement of the constitutional mandate and the other environmental
legislation.
To make certain reforms, the Forest (Conservation) Act was promulgated in 1980
over the preceding Act of 1927. The 1927 Act deals with the four forest categories,
namely reserved forests, village forests, protected forests, and private forests. A
forest land or waste land may be declared as reserved forest by state and may sell the
Critical Assessment of Existing Environmental Legislation and Policies in. . . 11

produce from these forests. Any unauthorized felling of trees, quarrying, grazing,
and hunting in reserved forests are punishable with a fine or imprisonment, or both.
Village forests are reserved forests assigned to a village community. The state
governments are empowered to designate protected forests and may prohibit the
felling of trees, quarrying, and removal of forest produce from these forests. The
enforcement of preservation of protected forests is done through rules, licenses, and
criminal prosecutions.

Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 (Jayakumar 1987)

The Public Liability Insurance Act was passed by an ordinance in the Parliament in
1991 to provide relief to those personnel involved in any casualty due to handling of
hazardous substances and thereby are within the provisions of the Act.
In particular, the Act provides a definitive public liability insurance scheme for
manufacturing units involved in management of hazardous substances and provides
assistance to victims by using a collective decision principle. The scheme will be
based on “no-fault” liability and will deal with providing relief and safeguard to
victims of casualties and also providing cover and assistance to the industry to fulfil
its liability for any such claims arising out of major mishaps. However, the victims of
the mishap can claim for compensation separately by going to courts.

National Environment Tribunal Act, 1995

The National Environment Tribunal Act was enacted in 1995 to provide for any
damages due to any accidents which occur due to handling of any hazardous
substance. The Act was set up in effective and expeditious settlements of such
cases. For cases arising of injuries and deaths of any person it imposes entire liability
on the owner of the manufacturing unit or the industry to pay the entire compensa-
tion. The affected victim may also claim for compensation under the provisions of
the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991.

Conclusion

The book chapter highlights and explains in great details the existing legislation
related to environmental concerns in India, including their establishment, formation,
members, power associated with them, and in some cases their eventual limitations
and drawbacks.
 12 A. Dhulia and R. Ganguly

Cross-References

▶ Implications of International Environmental Laws: A Close Enquiry at the Inter-

national Levels to Protect the Environment

References
Agarwal VK (2005) Environmental laws in India: challenges for enforcement. Bulletin of the
National Institute of. Ecology 15:227–238
Environmental Law & Practice Review, Volume I, (2011), The Registrar Nalsar University of Law,
Hydrabad.
Environmental Protection Authority (2016) Environmental impact assessment (part IV divisions
1 and 2) procedures manual 2016. EPA, Western Australia
Forest (Conservation) Rules (1980) Ministry of Environment and Science. Government of India,
New Delhi
Jayakumar K (1987) Environment protection act: a critical overview. Cochin University Law
Review 11:33–39
The Environment (Protection) Act (1986) Ministry of Environment and Science. Government of
India, New Delhi

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