WATER POLLUTION IN INDIA: LAWS, REGULATIONS, AND THE WAY FORWARD

Abstract:

Today, the greatest threat to our water resources undoubtedly comes from pollution. Although it is a problem all over the world, in developing countries, it is worse because of a large population, lack of finances, and inadequate scientific expertise. Indeed, in a country such as India wherein the call is for industrial development, the growing problem of water pollution has to be tackled, lest large public calamities threaten to engulf everybody. It is in this context that the research paper seeks to look into the existing legal mechanisms in India that address the issue of water pollution and try to analyse how effective have been the legal mechanism in mitigating this menace. The main objective of this paper is to prove that the legal regime in general and the Water Act in particular, dealing with water pollution, is flawed and that the control mechanism for pollution is not effective. It also offers alternative solutions that would help fill lacunae to effectively implement the law. However, this paper is not and does not pretend to be an exhaustive study of the nature of water pollution in its fullest import and dimensions. It is only an urgent look at a critical issue of water pollution.

Keywords: Water pollution, Regulations, Constitution, safety measure, pollution control

Introduction:

“Water is the stuff of life and a basic human right.”

If the natural regenerative capacity of a water resource is exceeded by the pollution load, then it is said that pollution has taken place. In India, 70% of the surface water sources, including rivers and lakes, are polluted, and groundwater pollution is alarmingly on the rise. This is a very significant issue. Because water supply for purposes of different users comes mainly from groundwater and surface water, pollution from the source may cause a shortage of water despite availability in adequate quantity. The categories of sources of water pollution include point sources and non-point sources or diffuse sources, which refer to the dumping of industrial effluents partly or wholly treated. This pollution not only affects only water quality but also it brings harm to the ecosystems and other species that depend on these water sources for survival.

Water pollution: framing the problem

Managing water pollution is a very challenging endeavour. In addition to this, there are other economic and administrative issues as well. These issues can be defined here. Firstly, India is a federal nation where all rivers cross state boundaries and water regulation falls under state jurisdiction. An upstream riparian state can hinder the efforts of a downstream riparian state to manage the water pollution of its river by utilizing its river water for different purposes, potentially altering the quality and amount of water that reaches the downstream riparian state. Secondly, measuring water pollution is not always straightforward, particularly in India, where there is a lack of adequate technology and expertise. Scientists currently use physical methods to test the degree of water pollution, which may involve using conductivity meters to measure the electrical conductivity of the water. The common test involves testing the Bio-chemical Oxygen Demand level in the water. The other problem is the inability to attain purity between the industrial standards and the sewage effluent that finds its way into the stream, as well as the stream’s water purity standards.[1]

LEGAL APPROACHES TO WATER POLLUTION: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATIONS IN INDIA

Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

The main object of Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974[2] was to provide a mechanism for the prevention of water pollution and also to provide for the maintenance of water bodies. For effective control and prevention of pollution, two authorities are in play: the Central Pollution Control Board and the State Pollution Control Board. It was promulgated as a Central legislation under Article 252[3] of the Constitution of India. This was one of the first major steps taken by the government of India for effective control of water pollution at such a level.

Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986

The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986[4] extends to water quality and the control of water Pollution. Section 2(a of the Act defines the environment to include water and the interrelationship That exists among and between water and human beings, other living creatures, planets, microorganisms, and property. The Act authorizes and Central Government to establish standards for the Quality of the environment and for the emission or discharge of environmental pollutants from any source.[5]

Indian Easements Act, 1882:

 According to Section 7[6] of the Easements Act, each riparian owner (riparian owner implies to someone who owns land adjoining to a water stream or river) is entitled right to the continued flow of water in a natural stream, and that too in a natural condition without any destruction or any unreasonable pollution.

The Green Tribunal: New legal approach

The right of victims of water pollution to seek compensation was ratified in the National Green Tribunal Act of 2010[7], which came into effect in June 2010. This means that, for the first time, the Act gives a Tribunal the power to provide for “restitution of the environment,” “restitution of property damaged,” and “relief and compensation to the victims of pollution and other environmental damage.” In this way, the National Green Tribunal will have jurisdiction over complaints and violations under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974[8].

With such provisions in the Act, all victims of water pollution will, in principle, have such rights.[9]

Approaching a District Magistrate or the Police:

If you want immediate action to be taken on water pollution, you can directly make an application to your District Magistrate under Section 133 of the Code of Criminal Procedure[10]. By an application made under this section, the Magistrate has the power to pass a conditional order to remove the nuisance, i.e. the act or person causing the pollution.

You can also lodge an FIR with the police under Section 277[11] Of the Indian Penal Code if someone is corrupting or fouling the water of a public spring or a reservoir with intent. The person who pollutes a public spring or reservoir can be punished with imprisonment and/or a fine.

Judicial decisions:

In MC Mehta vs Union of India,[12], a public interest case ascertaining the protection of indigenous cultures. It was attempted to secure the order of the Supreme Court to ban the tanneries located in the peripheral region of Kanpur city. The tanneries are not allowed to discharge trade effluent into the river Ganga without adequate treatment plants. The court observes that vast measures were provided for within the ambit of the Water Act, however, the SPCBs had not taken sufficient steps towards stopping the discharging of effluents into the river Ganga.

 Also pointed out that the Environment Act was never executed by the central government to put a stop to the enormous public nuisance caused by the tanneries. As for the tanneries, the Court observes that the fact that the sewer systems of the city are first made to bear the brunt of the tanneries’’ effluent being released does not absolve the tanneries from being dealt with provisions of the law in force. The Court considered all other factors and gave orders for the stoppage of activities in the tanneries that were polluting the river and that didn’t put up primary treatment plants.

In the universal public interest case MC Mehta v Union of India[13] (Municipalities matter), a petition seeking enforcement of the statutory provisions that impose duties on municipal authorities as well as the SPCB constituted under the Water Act. In the vicinity of the city, the Kanpur municipal corporation is to bear most of the blame for the pollution of the river because the Supreme Court observed that the municipal authorities have a legislative function to perform Ganga pollution to mitigate public nuisances. The Court added that the measures under the Water Act and the municipal laws aimed at preventing and controlling water pollution have largely remained unimplemented.

It was also alleged in the Indian Council for Enviro Legal Action v Union of India and Others.[14], how the untreated noxious sludge from a complex of industries within the village was making the water in different wells and rivers in village Bichhri Udaipur district of Rajasthan unfit for human consumption. The Supreme Court In its ruling stated that the respondents were ordered to pay full compensation to the villages of the surrounding areas and the environment affected as well. The Court maintains that the Environment Act expressly enables the imposition of the fees necessary to carry out the corrective measures.

Vellore Citizens Welfare Forum v Union of India and Others[15] is another case where the petitioner contended that the untreated wastes released into the river Palar in the State of Tamil Nadu, which was the source of drinking water, was causing severe contamination of water. The Supreme Court ordered the creation of an authority to control the Palar River pollution caused by the tanneries and other industries within the State through an Environment Act. The official was similarly instructed to formulate and implement strategies for restoring ecological/environmental harm inflicted by contamination in the State. Furthermore, the other direction of the court made all the tanneries pay pollution fines while ordering all those who fail to pay not to operate. However, those shutdown orders were allowed to be deferred in situations where the tanneries agreed to build joint effluent treatment plants or separate pollution control equipment and get permission from the SPCB to operate.

In the author’s perspective, In India, the issue of water pollution is of great relevance. The problem of water pollution is given a constitutional perspective by evaluating the right to life in the Constitution to mean the right to a clean and unpolluted water environment. Water pollution, like many other areas, is regulated through a set of municipal bylaws as well as civil and criminal legislation for public nuisance. There is also a specific statute to address water pollution as well as an environmental protection law that is premised primarily on the command-and-control model. However, the public nuisance provisions have not been invoked and there are also considerable problems with the effective implementation of the first three laws. There have been several public interest litigation suits on water pollution, but most have had varying levels of success.

Constitutional provisions for water pollution:

The Indian Supreme Court has interpreted Article 21 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to life, quite broadly, which includes the right to receive a wholesome and pollution-free water environment which was stated in the case of Subash Kumar v State of Bihar & Others[16] and the right to comfortable living standards stated in Virendra Gaur & Others v State of Haryana & Others[17]. Two of the Directive Principles of State Policy, which are found in Part IV of the Constitution, provide that the State shall endeavor

(a) to improve public health – Article 47[18] and

(b) to protect and improve the environment Article 48-A[19], are also significant.

Moreover, the protection and improvement of the environment including the preservation of lakes and rivers, has been acknowledged as a fundamental duty of every citizen under the Constitution as provided in Article 51-A(g)[20]. Under the Constitution, water, sanitation, and public health services are included in List II of the Indian Constitution Seventh Schedule and are within the jurisdiction of state governments as opposed to the Central Government. The 73rd and 74th amendments to the Constitution effectively deal with the Water Pollution Act of 1992 Amended the Constitution to add Parts IX and X.

Conclusion:

Thus, it happens to be a deplorable environmental disaster threatening viable ecosystems and man’s health at large. Hazards through contamination of fresh water are through direct effluence of poisonous substances, effluent of heavy metal, agricultural effluent as well as plastic effluent thrown through them; as a result, the aquatic biota goes haywire besides upsetting the critical balance of susceptible ecosystems. This man-made disaster needs immediate coordinated action in strengthening advanced filtering techniques, strict frameworks of regulation, and stimulation of practice for sustainable industrial and agriculture. Permanent damage will be done to the hydrological cycle due to this water pollution. Therefore, if immediate efforts are not made, the supply of drinkable water and by extension the very fundamental basis of human life will be seriously threatened. Hence, a more integrative approach that can cover the adverse effects of water pollution under collaborative international efforts along with increasing concern for the environment will be required.

Suggestions:

Awareness to the public: Besides these legislative and judicial measures, it is also important to enhance public awareness of the issue of water pollution. It should include the elementary duties of the citizens towards the environment, how to protect them, etc. In addition, children from schools as well as teachers must be included in the same.

Comprehensive environmental law: Natural resources are interlinked with each other. Therefore, a detailed and comprehensive model for effective environmental law should be adopted by studying various environmental legal systems across the globe.

Effective utilization of funds or higher allocation: Due to sensitivity in such issues, the funds should be rightly allocated and allocation should be fully utilized For Water pollution safety measures.

Reference(s):

[1] Gautam Gupta, Water Pollution and the Laws in India: A Critical Analysis, Manupatra (2023), <https://articles.manupatra.com/article-details/Water-Pollution-And-The-Laws-In-India-A-Critical-Analysis.>  (last visited Jan.20,2025)

[2] Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

[3] The Constitution of India 1950, Article 252

[4] The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986

[5] Anuj Aggarwal & Razit Sharma, Legal Aspects of Water Pollution and Its Control in India, IJCRT (Int’l J. of Creative Research Thoughts), Vol. 6, Issue 12 (2018), <https://www.ijcrt.org/papers/IJCRT1813249.pdf.>  (last visited Jan. 20,2025)

[6] The Indian Easements Act 1882, S 7

[7] National Green Tribunal Act, 2010

[8] Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

[9] Shonottra Kumar, Guest Blog, Water: Dealing with Laws, Pollution, and Complaints in India, NYAAYA, <https://nyaaya.org/guest-blog/water-dealing-with-laws-pollution-and-complaints-in-india/.>  (last visited Jan.20,2025)

[10] Code of Criminal Procedure 1973, S 133

[11] Indian Penal Code 1860, S 277

[12] MC Mehta vs Union of India, AIR 1988 SC 1037

[13] MC Mehta v Union of India A.I.R, 1988 SC 1115

[14] Enviro Legal Action v Union of India and Others AIR 1996 SC 1446

[15] Vellore Citizens Welfare Forum v Union of India and Others AIR 1996 SC 2715

[16] Subash Kumar v State of Bihar & Others, AIR 1991 SC 420

[17] Virendra Gaur & Others v State of Haryana & Others (1995) 2 SCC 577

[18] THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA 1950, Article 47

[19] THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA 1950, Article 48A

[20] THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA 1950, Article 51-A(g)