Q.01

What are the main environmental laws in India?

India's environmental law rests on nine central Acts listed in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change's (MoEFCC) 2025-26 Annual Report: the Water Act 1974, the Water Cess Act 1977, the Air Act 1981, the Indian Forest Act 1927, the Wild Life (Protection) Act 1972, the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980, the Environment (Protection) Act 1986, the Public Liability Insurance Act 1991 and the National Green Tribunal Act 2010. There is also the Biological Diversity Act, 2002. In practice most operational requirements (waste, chemicals, standards, impact assessment, coastal zones) come from Rules and notifications made under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

Approach: I used MoEFCC's 2025-26 Annual Report, PIB releases, CPCB's Acts and Rules pages, and MoEFCC Gazette notifications from 1986 to 2017 (held in the PARIVESH archive). I also checked the MSIHC and ozone-depleting-substances rules and the PARIVESH clearance register. I couldn't open the Gazette or India Code texts of the Acts themselves or of the 2023 forest and 2024 water amendments, so this answer doesn't describe those Acts' contents in detail.

1. Core Acts

MoEFCC's Annual Report 2025-26 (pp. 8-9, quoting the Allocation of Business Rules as last amended 25.08.2025) lists these Acts:

ActWhat it covers (from official sources opened)
Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 (6 of 1974)The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) was set up under it in September 1974. Its purpose is preventing, controlling and abating water pollution (CPCB).
Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977 (36 of 1977)Listed by MoEFCC; contents not checked.
Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 (14 of 1981)CPCB holds powers under it to prevent, control or abate air pollution (CPCB).
Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (29 of 1986)The umbrella statute; most of the Rules below are made under it [1]. Its Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986 were notified as S.O. 844(E) on 19/11/1986 [2].
Indian Forest Act, 1927 (16 of 1927)Forest administration.
Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 (69 of 1980)Controls use of forest land; proposals go through PARIVESH as forest clearances.
Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 (53 of 1972)Protected areas and species. Tiger reserves are notified under its Section 38V (PIB, 27 Dec 2024). Projects affecting these areas need a wildlife clearance with a recommendation from the national or state wildlife board [3].
Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 (6 of 1991)Listed by MoEFCC; contents not checked.
National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (19 of 2010)Sets up the specialist environmental tribunal.
Biological Diversity Act, 2002Its 2023 amendment came into force on 1 April 2024, and the Biological Diversity Rules, 2024 were notified on 22 October 2024 (PIB).

2. Main Rules and notifications

Impact assessment and coastal zones

  • EIA Notification, 2006: the basis for prior environmental clearance [4].
  • Coastal Regulation Zone Notification, 2019 (G.S.R. 37(E), 18 January 2019): made under section 3 of the 1986 Act. It replaced the CRZ Notification 2011 and covers land from the High Tide Line to 500 m inland, plus waters out to the 12 nautical mile limit (Gazette text via Odisha SCZMA).
  • CRZ clearances are processed on PARIVESH alongside environmental, forest and wildlife clearances [5].

Chemicals and hazardous substances

  • Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical (MSIHC) Rules, 1989 (S.O. 966(E), 27/11/1989) [6]. Enforcement is split between MoEFCC, the pollution control boards, Factories Inspectorates and other authorities [7].
  • Chemical Accidents (Emergency Planning, Preparedness and Response) Rules, 1996 (G.S.R. 347(E)) [8], amended in 2015 [9].
  • Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 (S.O. 670(E)) [10].
  • Rules on hazardous micro-organisms and genetically engineered organisms or cells (later notifications 2008 and 2010) [11].

Emission, effluent and noise standards

  • Revised National Ambient Air Quality Standards (G.S.R. 826(E), 16/11/2009) [12].
  • Sector-specific standards under the Environment (Protection) Rules, for example thermal power plants (S.O. 3305(E), 2015) [13].
  • Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules: the archive holds the amendments of 2000 to 2010 [14].

Waste and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)

These are the instruments CPCB currently lists:

  • Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016: ten amendments, the latest on 12.11.2024. They include EPR for waste tyres (21.07.2022) and used oil (18.09.2023) (CPCB).
  • E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2022: amended in 2023 and 2024 (CPCB).
  • Battery Waste Management Rules, 2022: CPCB also posts 2023, 2024 and 2025 instruments, the latest updated 12 March 2025 (CPCB).
  • Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016: amended in 2018, 2021 and 2022 (CPCB).
  • Bio-medical Waste Management Rules, 2016: latest amendment 17.04.2026 (CPCB).
  • Solid Waste Management Rules, 2026: posted 1 April 2026 (CPCB).
  • Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules, 2025: posted 26 May 2025 (CPCB).

MoEFCC says EPR has been notified for plastic, tyre, battery, used oil and e-waste. EPR for scrap metal, end-of-life vehicles, solid and liquid waste, and construction and demolition waste was "under active consideration" as of December 2024 (PIB).

3. Recent changes

  • Decriminalisation of the Environment (Protection) Act: done through the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023, effective 1 April 2024. Penal provisions were "completely decriminalized", adjudicating officers now set penalties, and a fund collects the penalty money (PIB).
  • Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Amendment Act, 2024: it exists, and a statutory resolution to adopt it in Manipur was moved in December 2025 (All India Radio). I couldn't open its Gazette text to confirm its contents.
  • Eco-mark Rules: notified 26 September 2024, replacing the 1991 Eco-mark scheme (PIB).
  • Carbon Credit Trading Scheme: set up under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001 (as amended in 2022), not under MoEFCC's own Acts (same PIB release).

This answer covers central law only. States run the Water and Air Act consents through their State Pollution Control Boards, and the 2024 Water amendment applies only where it has been adopted.

Q.02

Which rules cover hazardous chemicals and waste?

In India, hazardous chemicals are covered by two linked sets of Rules made under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986: the Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical (MSIHC) Rules, 1989 and the Chemical Accidents (Emergency Planning, Preparedness and Response) Rules, 1996. Hazardous waste is covered by the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016 ("HOWM Rules"). Separate Rules cover e-waste, batteries, plastics and bio-medical waste.

Approach: I used the MSIHC Rules (India Code consolidated and 1989 Gazette texts), MoEFCC Gazette notifications from 1986 to 2017 (PARIVESH archive), CPCB's hazardous-waste archive and EPR portal directory, and CPCB's current Rules page. The archive stops at 2017, so I took the current list of hazardous-waste amendments from CPCB's website.

Hazardous chemicals

MSIHC Rules, 1989 (S.O. 966(E), 27/11/1989, made under Sections 6, 8 and 25 of the 1986 Act) [6]

  • What counts as a hazardous chemical: a chemical that meets the Schedule 1 Part I criteria or is listed in Schedule 1 Part II, or is listed in Schedule 2 or Schedule 3. The Rules apply to industrial activities, isolated storage and pipelines [6].
  • Major accident hazard (MAH) installations: the 2000 amendment defines these as sites handling Schedule 2 or Schedule 3 chemicals at or above the threshold quantities in column 3 [15].
  • What the occupier must do:
    • Identify major accident hazards, take steps to prevent them and train workers [16].
    • Report a major accident to the concerned authority within 48 hours (as amended in 1994) [16].
    • Notify the site using Schedule 7 at least 3 months before starting [17].
    • Send a safety report (Schedule 8) at least 90 days before starting. Get an independent safety audit and update it every year [18].
    • Keep an on-site emergency plan and run a mock drill every six months [19].
  • Who enforces: Schedule 5 splits enforcement between authorities. Examples are the Chief Inspector of Dock Safety for ports, the Chief Inspector of Mines, and the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board [20].

Chemical Accidents (EPPR) Rules, 1996 (G.S.R. 347(E), 1 August 1996) [8]

  • They use the MSIHC definition of a hazardous chemical and the MSIHC off-site emergency plans.
  • They set up Crisis Groups at four levels:
    • Central: meets at least every six months.
    • State: meets at least every three months.
    • District: meets every 45 days.
    • Local: meets monthly.
  • The Central Government must run a Crisis Alert System, including a control room and a published list of MAH installations.
  • They were amended in 2015 [9].

Related rules in the same MoEFCC hazardous-substances set: the rules on hazardous micro-organisms and genetically engineered organisms or cells (S.O. 411(E), 25/02/2008 [11], and G.S.R. 1(E), 23/12/2010 [21]), and the ODS Rules, 2000 [10].

Hazardous waste

HOWM Rules, 2016

  • CPCB lists ten amendments (CPCB):
    • 06.07.2016
    • 28.02.2017
    • 11.06.2018
    • 01.03.2019
    • 09.10.2020
    • 12.11.2021
    • 21.07.2022 (EPR for waste tyres)
    • 18.09.2023 (EPR for used oil)
    • 12.03.2024
    • 12.11.2024
  • Rule 9 (using waste as a resource or for co-processing): this needs authorisation from the State Pollution Control Board, based on CPCB SOPs or guidelines. Where no SOP exists, CPCB approves after trial runs. Co-processing in cement plants needs no trial run [22].
  • Rule 18(4): a consignor sending waste for use in another state must inform both State Boards; no NOC is needed [22].

Earlier rules

  • The 2016 Rules replaced the Hazardous Waste (MH&TM) Rules, 2008 (CPCB).
  • The 2008 Rules were S.O. 2265(E), 24 September 2008. The 2009 notifications S.O. 1799(E) and S.O. 2447(E) amended them [23]. They are not separate "2009 Rules", even though the archive titles them that way.

Waste-stream rules and EPR

The current instruments (E-Waste Rules 2022, Battery Waste Rules 2022, Plastic Waste Rules 2016, Bio-medical Waste Rules 2016, Solid Waste Rules 2026, C&D Waste Rules 2025) are as set out in my previous answer. The archive also holds superseded predecessors:

  • Bio-Medical Waste Rules, 1998 [24]
  • Plastic Waste Rules, 2011 [25]
  • Batteries (Management and Handling) Amendment Rules, 2010 [26]
  • Fly-ash notification S.O. 763(E), 1999 [27]

CPCB currently runs six EPR portals, all updated 13 Feb 2026:

The ELV portal suggests ELV EPR has gone live since MoEFCC described it as "under consideration" in December 2024. I haven't opened the ELV rules themselves.

I can next look up whether a specific chemical is listed in MSIHC Schedule 1, 2 or 3, and at what threshold quantity.

Q.03

Where are new notifications published?

New central environmental notifications in India take legal effect by publication in the Gazette of India, normally the Extraordinary issue, Part II, Section 3. MoEFCC then posts copies on its own website and in a legal repository. CPCB's Rules pages give the current amendment list for each waste rule.

Approach: I read MoEFCC's archived Gazette notifications (1986-2017, held on PARIVESH) to see how notifications are published, then opened MoEFCC's website to find where it posts them now. I couldn't open the eGazette portal or the PIB release on e-publication this time.

1. The Gazette of India (the legal source)

  • Where they appear: MoEFCC notifications are printed in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3, Sub-section (ii). Examples are the 1991 delegation-of-powers order S.O. 145(E) [34], the 2006 EIA corrigendum S.O. 1939(E) [35] and the CRZ 2011 principal notification S.O. 19(E) [36].
  • Citation numbers: the "S.O. ...(E)" and "G.S.R. ...(E)" numbers you see on Indian environmental instruments are Gazette serial numbers. "(E)" means the Extraordinary issue.
  • When they take effect: amending rules usually come into force "on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette". Examples are the Noise Pollution (Amendment) Rules, 2002 [37] and the Environment (Protection) Second Amendment Rules, 2006 [38].

2. Draft notifications and the comment window

  • The rule: under rule 5(3) of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986, drafts are also published in the Gazette.
  • Comment period: objections and suggestions are invited within sixty days from the date copies of that Gazette issue are made available to the public [39][27].
  • How to respond: each draft names where to send comments. For example, the 2009 eco-sensitive zone drafts asked for comments by post to the Secretary, MoEF, or by email [40].
  • Final notification: this then records when the draft's Gazette copies were made public and that the comments received were considered [41].

3. Where to watch online

  • Government of India eGazette portal (egazette.gov.in): this hosts the Gazette issues themselves, but I couldn't open it this time to describe its search options.
  • MoEFCC website: it has an "Orders and Notifications" section, a "Circular and Office Memorandum" section, and a 2025 archive of orders and notifications (MoEFCC). Its Subordinate Legislation page points to the Environment Clearance Legal Repository on environmentclearance.nic.in for the full set of rules (MoEFCC).
  • CPCB Rules pages: these list each waste rule with its dated amendments, as used in my earlier answers. One example is the HOWM Rules page with its ten amendments (CPCB).
  • States: state-level instruments, such as SPCB orders and state rules, appear in each state's own official Gazette, not the Gazette of India.

I can set up a check of recent MoEFCC Gazette notifications on a topic you name, such as hazardous waste amendments or MSIHC changes.

Q.04