The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (Act No. 29 of 1986) is India’s umbrella environmental legislation, enacted in the aftermath of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy to give the Central Government sweeping powers to protect and improve the environment and prevent, control, and abate environmental pollution.
CHAPTER I — PRELIMINARY
CHAPTER II — GENERAL POWERS OF THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT
- Section 3 — Power of Central Government to take measures to protect and improve environment
- Section 4 — Appointment of officers and their powers and functions
- Section 5 — Power to give directions
- Section 6 — Rules to regulate environmental pollution
CHAPTER III — PREVENTION, CONTROL AND ABATEMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
- Section 7 — Persons carrying on industry, operation, etc., not to allow emission or discharge of environmental pollutants in excess of the standards
- Section 8 — Persons handling hazardous substances to comply with procedural safeguards
- Section 9 — Furnishing of information to authorities and agencies in certain cases
- Section 10 — Powers of entry and inspection
- Section 11 — Power to take sample and procedure to be followed in connection therewith
- Section 12 — Environmental laboratories
- Section 13 — Government analysts
- Section 14 — Reports of Government analysts
- Section 15 — Penalty for contravention of the provisions of the Act and the rules, orders and directions
- Section 16 — Offences by companies
- Section 17 — Offences by Government departments
CHAPTER IV — MISCELLANEOUS
- Section 18 — Protection of action taken in good faith
- Section 19 — Cognizance of offences
- Section 20 — Information, reports or returns
- Section 21 — Members, officers and employees of the authority constituted under section 3 to be public servants
- Section 22 — Bar of jurisdiction
- Section 23 — Powers to delegate
- Section 24 — Effect of other laws
- Section 25 — Power to make rules
- Section 26 — Rules made under this Act to be laid before Parliament
Note: The Act has seven Schedules (added and amended over the years via the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986) setting out detailed technical standards — emission and discharge limits, ambient air and noise quality standards, and vehicle emission limits — which are not reproduced here given their highly technical, frequently-revised, tabular nature.
