The Legislative Assembly on Thursday passed a resolution for adoption of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Amendment Act, 2024, of the Government of India. It is aimed at fostering trust-based governance, ease of living, and ease-of-doing business.

The Act, initially applied to Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, and all Union Territories after the President gave assent to it on February 15, 2024, is to be adopted by other States.

The amendment Act replaced rigid criminal penalties for minor administrative and technical violations with structured financial penalties.

Introducing the resolution on behalf of Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Environment & Forests K. Pawan Kalyan, Civil Supplies Minister Nadendla Manohar said minor non-compliances and contraventions were now subjected to financial penalties ranging from ₹10,000 to ₹15 lakh, along with additional daily fines of up to ₹10,000 for ongoing violations.

Under the Act, the Central Government would appoint senior officials to serve as adjudicating officers to hold inquiries and levy fines, and all the collected penalties would be credited directly to the Environmental Protection Fund.

The Minister further said individuals aggrieved with the adjudicating officers’ rulings could appeal to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) within 60 days upon depositing 10% of the imposed penalty.

While minor offences were decriminalised, serious ones like failing to comply with industrial consent norms under Sections 25 or 26, or defaulting on penalty payments for more than 90 days would still be liable to criminal action, including imprisonment for one to seven years.

The Act empowers the Central government to issue binding guidelines to the State Boards regarding the grant, refusal, or cancellation of industrial establishment consents, and allows for exemption of certain categories of industrial plants.

Published - August 20, 2026 07:19 pm IST