CAQM

CAQM: a practical guide to your rights, the procedure and what to do first. Legals365 is the legal platform of Advocate B.K. Singh and associates, based in Delhi NCR.

In short. An environmental lawyer handles two kinds of work: keeping a business compliant with the Water Act, Air Act, Environment (Protection) Act and waste rules, and representing businesses, residents and RWAs before pollution control boards, the National Green Tribunal, High Courts and criminal courts. Most matters start with a board notice, a consent or clearance problem, or a pollution complaint, and the first written reply often decides how the case goes.

Environmental law in India is mostly regulatory. A factory, hospital, hotel, builder or housing society deals with the state pollution control board for consents, authorisations and returns, and with the Ministry or a state authority for clearances. When something goes wrong, the same regulator issues a show cause notice, a direction, a closure order or a demand for environmental compensation. A neighbour or an RWA may file a complaint, or someone may take the matter straight to the National Green Tribunal.

This page explains what an environmental lawyer actually does, which laws and authorities matter, how notices and NGT cases proceed, how penalties and prosecutions work after the recent decriminalisation, and what residents can do about pollution near them. It applies across states and cities; the section about your city or authority on this page adds the local detail, such as which board has jurisdiction and where its offices and appellate authority sit.

Main laws

Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974; Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981; Environment (Protection) Act 1986 and the rules under it (EIA Notification 2006, waste management rules, noise rules); National Green Tribunal Act 2010; Wild Life (Protection) Act 1972; Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam 1980; CAQM Act 2021 for Delhi NCR

Regulators

Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB); state pollution control boards and pollution control committees in union territories (DPCC in Delhi, UPPCB, HSPCB, MPCB, GPCB and others); MoEFCC and state environment impact assessment authorities (SEIAA); Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR; CGWA for groundwater

Forums

Appellate authority under the Water and Air Acts; National Green Tribunal (Principal Bench at New Delhi and zonal benches at Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai); High Courts under Article 226; Supreme Court; magistrate's court for prosecutions

Time limits

Appeal against a board order to the appellate authority within 30 days; NGT appeal under section 16 within 30 days (plus up to 60 days); NGT application under section 14 within 6 months of the cause of action (plus up to 60 days); compensation claim under section 15 within 5 years; appeal to the Supreme Court within 90 days

Documents

Consent to establish and operate, authorisations, environmental clearance and its compliance reports, the notice or order, inspection report, monitoring and lab results, annual returns, photographs and the correspondence with the board

What an environmental lawyer does

An environmental lawyer helps with permissions, notices and disputes under India's pollution, forest and wildlife laws. For a business that usually means getting and keeping the consents and authorisations it needs, answering board notices, defending closure orders and compensation demands, and appearing before the NGT. For residents, farmers and RWAs it usually means making a complaint that the regulator cannot ignore, and taking it to the NGT or the High Court when the regulator does nothing.

The work is half paperwork and half litigation, and the two are linked. A unit whose consent conditions, returns and monitoring reports are in order wins most notices at the reply stage. A unit with gaps in its file ends up in front of the NGT with little to show. That is why we usually start a new matter by reading the consent order line by line and comparing each condition with what is happening on the ground.

Environmental law also overlaps with other areas. Directors may face criminal complaints. Buyers and lenders need environmental due diligence. Builders face both RERA and pollution issues. Labour, fire safety and factory licensing questions arise in the same inspection. A good environmental advice looks at the whole file rather than one notice in isolation.

The laws that come up in most matters

Who regulates what: boards, ministry, authorities and courts

The state pollution control board, or the pollution control committee in a union territory, is the regulator most businesses deal with every day. It grants consent to establish and consent to operate, hazardous and bio-medical waste authorisations, and in many states EPR-related permissions; it inspects, samples and issues notices and directions. In Delhi this is the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC); Noida and Ghaziabad fall under the UP Pollution Control Board (UPPCB); Gurugram and Faridabad under the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB).

The Central Pollution Control Board sets standards, runs the EPR portals, issues guidelines and can direct state boards. MoEFCC and the state environment impact assessment authorities (SEIAA) grant environmental clearance under the EIA Notification 2006. In Delhi NCR, the Commission for Air Quality Management issues binding directions on air quality, including the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP). The Central Ground Water Authority or the state groundwater authority handles groundwater permissions, and municipal bodies handle solid waste, construction and demolition waste and sewage connections.

Disputes go to the appellate authority under the Water and Air Acts (usually a state government officer or tribunal), then to the NGT, and from there to the Supreme Court. The High Court hears writ petitions where the NGT has no jurisdiction or where constitutional questions arise. Criminal prosecutions under the environmental statutes start on a complaint before the magistrate.

Common problems, the law that applies and where they go

Compliance work: consents, authorisations, returns and audits

Most environmental trouble starts with a lapsed or mismatched permission. A unit needs consent to establish before construction and consent to operate before production, renewed before expiry, with the production capacity, products and pollution control equipment matching what is actually installed. Expansions, change of product mix, new DG sets or a change of ownership can all need a fresh or amended consent. Our page on consent to establish and consent to operate covers renewals and transfers in detail.

On top of consents come the waste authorisations (hazardous waste, bio-medical waste, e-waste, plastic and battery EPR), annual returns, environmental statements, online continuous monitoring where required, and compliance reports for projects with environmental clearance. Boards increasingly cross-check these filings against each other and against online monitoring data, so a careless return can trigger a notice months later.

A periodic legal compliance audit catches most of these gaps. We read each consent condition, check it against site records and photographs, and give the unit a list of what to fix before the next inspection. This is far cheaper than defending a closure order, and the audit file itself becomes useful evidence of good faith if a notice comes.

Board notices, directions and closure orders: the first 48 hours

When a notice arrives, read what it actually is. A show cause notice asks you to explain before action is taken. A proposed direction under section 33A of the Water Act or section 31A of the Air Act usually gives a short time, often 15 days, for objections. An interim closure direction, sometimes with disconnection of electricity and water, takes effect at once and needs urgent steps. A demand for environmental compensation names an amount and a basis for calculation.

In the first 48 hours, collect the inspection report and sampling results the notice relies on (ask for them in writing if they were not attached), your consent orders, the latest monitoring data and photographs of the treatment and control systems as they are now. Fix what can be fixed immediately and document it with dated photographs and invoices. Then reply within time, point by point, attaching evidence rather than assurances.

Ask for a personal hearing where the notice allows it, and keep a note of what was said. If the board passes a final adverse order, the remedy is usually an appeal to the appellate authority and then the NGT, not a fresh representation. See our pages on show cause notice replies, closure orders and state pollution control board notices.

How a typical notice matter moves from inspection to final order

1. Inspection and sampling

   Board officers inspect the unit, often after a complaint or an online monitoring alert, take samples and prepare an inspection report. Ask for a copy of the sampling record and check whether a split sample was offered to you.

2. Show cause notice or proposed direction

   The board writes to the occupier with the alleged violations and the action it proposes. The time given for reply is short and should not be missed.

3. Written reply with evidence

   The reply answers each allegation, attaches consents, monitoring data, lab reports and photographs, and explains what has been fixed. Admissions should be careful and limited to facts.

4. Personal hearing

   Many boards give a hearing before a final direction. This is the chance to show the corrective steps and offer a time-bound action plan, sometimes with a bank guarantee.

5. Final order and appeal

   The board may drop the matter, impose conditions, demand compensation or order closure. An adverse order can be appealed to the appellate authority and then to the NGT within the limitation period.

6. Compliance and revocation

   If closure is ordered, the unit applies for revocation after completing the corrective work, usually with an inspection and a bank guarantee. Keep everything in writing.

Penalties and prosecution after decriminalisation

Environmental offences used to be almost entirely criminal: imprisonment and fine, tried before a magistrate on a complaint by the board. Since the Jan Vishwas Act 2023 amended the Environment (Protection) Act and the Air Act, and the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Amendment Act 2024 amended the Water Act in the states that have adopted it, many contraventions now attract monetary penalties fixed by an adjudicating officer after a hearing, with an appeal to the NGT. Penalties can run into several lakh rupees, with additional amounts for each day a violation continues.

Decriminalisation is not complete. Some contraventions remain offences, failure to pay a penalty can itself lead to prosecution, and the BNS nuisance provisions still apply. Which contraventions remain criminal differs between the three Acts and between states, so check the current section before assuming a matter is only about money.

Environmental compensation is a separate stream. Boards and the CPCB, following NGT directions, demand compensation calculated by a formula that considers the pollution index of the industry, the scale of operation, the duration of the violation and the location. These demands can be challenged on facts and on the formula. Our page on environmental compensation explains the grounds.

Criminal liability of companies and directors

Where a company commits an offence under the Water Act, Air Act or EP Act, every person in charge of and responsible for the conduct of its business at the time is deemed guilty, unless he proves the offence happened without his knowledge or that he took all due diligence to prevent it. Directors, managers and occupiers named in board complaints often have little to do with day-to-day plant operation, and that is a defence worth building early.

A prosecution under these Acts can only begin on a complaint by the board or the authorised officer, or by a person who has given 60 days' notice to the board of the intention to complain. The magistrate takes cognizance on that complaint. Defects in the complaint, in the sampling procedure or in the authorisation of the officer filing it are common grounds for discharge or quashing. Where a complaint is plainly abusive or the matter has been compounded or settled through compliance, a petition before the High Court may be appropriate, as explained on our page on quashing of criminal proceedings.

Advocate B.K. Singh's practical advice to directors who receive summons is simple: appear through counsel on the first date, file the documents showing your role in the company, and do not treat the summons as a formality because the unit has since been fixed. Compliance after the event helps, but it does not erase the complaint on its own.

Cases in the National Green Tribunal

The NGT is the main forum for environmental disputes. It hears applications raising a substantial question relating to the environment under the seven statutes in Schedule I of the NGT Act (section 14), claims for relief and compensation for environmental damage (section 15), and appeals against orders of boards, appellate authorities and clearance authorities (section 16). It cannot hear matters under the Wild Life (Protection) Act or the Indian Forest Act, which go to the High Court.

Limitation is strict. A section 14 application must be filed within six months of the cause of action first arising, and a section 16 appeal within 30 days of the order being communicated, with up to 60 more days for sufficient cause in both cases. Compensation claims under section 15 have five years. The court fee is modest where no compensation is claimed. The Principal Bench sits in New Delhi; zonal benches at Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai hear matters from their regions.

In practice, the NGT often appoints a joint committee (typically of the CPCB, the state board and the district magistrate) to inspect and report, and its orders frequently turn on that report. If you are the respondent, engage with the committee visit and put your documents on record. Our page on filing and defending a case in the NGT explains the procedure in detail.

The High Court, the Supreme Court and environmental PILs

High Courts hear writ petitions under Article 226 on environmental issues outside the NGT's statutes, such as wildlife and forest offences, municipal failures that are not tied to a Schedule I statute, and challenges to the vires of rules. They also hear writs against orders passed without jurisdiction or in breach of natural justice. Public interest litigation by residents and groups remains common, especially for urban issues such as waterbodies, drains, landfills and trees.

Appeals from the NGT go directly to the Supreme Court under section 22 within 90 days, on the questions listed in section 100 of the CPC. The Supreme Court also runs long-standing continuing matters on air pollution in Delhi NCR, vehicular emissions, forests and the Taj Trapezium, and its orders in those matters bind authorities and industries in the region.

For urgent stays, contempt of environmental orders and PIL drafting, see our page on environmental PIL, stay applications and contempt. A word of caution: courts expect a PIL petitioner to have approached the regulator first and to come with documents, not newspaper reports alone.

For residents, RWAs and farmers: complaining about pollution

If a factory, STP, landfill, construction site or DG set is polluting near you, start with a written complaint to the state pollution control board, with photographs, videos with dates, locations and, where possible, an independent lab report on water or soil. Copy the CPCB and the district magistrate. Many boards accept online complaints; keep the acknowledgement number. A complaint signed by an RWA or by several residents carries more weight than an anonymous one.

If the board does not act, the next steps are a complaint to the magistrate for removal of a public nuisance under BNSS section 152, a civil suit for injunction and damages for nuisance, or an application to the NGT under sections 14 and 15. The NGT route is often the most effective for continuing pollution because it can direct inspection, closure and compensation in one case. For sewage problems in housing societies, see our page on sewage discharge and STP compliance.

Be honest about the evidence. Smell and noise are real nuisances, but cases on them need measurement records or an inspection report to succeed. Avoid exaggeration in a complaint, because the other side will use it to discredit the whole case.

Delhi NCR specifics: CAQM, GRAP and the three state boards

Delhi NCR has an extra layer of regulation because of its air quality. The Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas, set up under the CAQM Act 2021, issues binding directions on industrial fuels, DG sets, construction dust and vehicles, and enforces the Graded Response Action Plan, which tightens restrictions in stages as the AQI worsens. During higher GRAP stages, construction and certain industrial activities can be stopped across the region at short notice.

A business in Delhi deals with DPCC; in Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad with UPPCB; in Gurugram, Faridabad and Sonipat with HSPCB. The rules and portals differ in detail even where the law is the same, and the appellate authorities are different for each state. The NGT's Principal Bench in New Delhi hears matters from Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, which makes it convenient for NCR clients.

For air emissions, online monitoring and DG set norms, see our page on air pollution and OCEMS compliance. Construction sites in NCR should keep dust control measures documented daily, since CAQM flying squads and board inspections often come without notice.

Environmental due diligence in deals and lending

Environmental liabilities follow the land and the business. A buyer of an industrial unit, a lender taking a factory as security or an investor in a manufacturing company should check consents, authorisations, environmental clearance and its compliance reports, pending notices and NGT cases, groundwater permissions and the history of the site. The Environment Protection (Management of Contaminated Sites) Rules 2025 now give a framework for identifying and remediating contaminated land, with clean-up costs falling on the polluter where it can be traced.

Contracts should allocate pre-closing environmental liabilities clearly, through representations, indemnities and, where needed, escrow. A consent to operate is not freely transferable; a change of ownership usually needs intimation or a fresh consent in the buyer's name. An environmental clearance can be transferred to a new owner by applying to the authority that granted it.

Listed companies also report environmental performance in their BRSR disclosures, which creates its own legal risk if the statements are inaccurate. Our page on ESG, BRSR and greenwashing risk covers that side, and the page on environmental clearance covers EC transfers and violations.

Documents to keep ready

Costs, timelines and online consultation

Costs depend on what the matter needs: a one-time notice reply, a compliance audit, an appeal before the appellate authority or a contested NGT case with inspections and expert reports. Court fees in environmental matters are modest; the real costs are professional fees, monitoring and lab reports, and the corrective works themselves. We give a written estimate after seeing the papers, and we do not quote fees on this website.

Timelines vary widely. A well-supported notice reply can close a matter in weeks. A revocation of closure depends on how quickly the corrective work is done and inspected. NGT cases can take months to a few years, though interim directions often come early. Prosecutions in magistrate courts tend to be slow.

Much environmental work can be done through online consultation, since it turns on documents. Send the notice, the consent orders and recent monitoring reports in advance, and the first call can go straight to what needs doing. Hearings before boards and the NGT increasingly allow video appearance, though site inspections still need people on the ground.

Mistakes that make environmental cases harder

• Letting consents lapse. Operating on an expired consent turns every inspection into a violation. Apply for renewal well before expiry.
• Replying late or without evidence. A reply that only says the unit is compliant, without data and photographs, is treated as no reply.
• Ignoring the inspection report. Ask for the report and sampling record. Errors in them are often the best defence.
• Running bypass lines or switching off monitoring. Nothing destroys credibility faster with the board or the NGT.
• Treating an NGT committee visit casually. The committee's report usually decides the case. Prepare for it like a hearing.
• Filing a resident complaint with no proof. Dated photographs, lab reports and earlier complaints make the regulator act; general allegations do not.

What to do this week

If you run a unit, pull out your consent orders and authorisations and check expiry dates and conditions against what is on site today. If a notice has arrived, note the reply deadline, ask for the inspection report and start collecting evidence. If you are facing a raid or inspection, see our page on pollution board inspections and seizures for what to do on the day.

If you are a resident or RWA, put your complaint in writing to the board with evidence, keep the acknowledgement and give the board a reasonable time to act. If nothing happens, a section 14 application before the NGT or a nuisance complaint before the magistrate is the next step, within the limitation period.

If you want the papers checked before you act, the team of Advocate B.K. Singh at Legals365 can review them and tell you the next step: talk to a lawyer.

Frequently asked questions

What does an environmental lawyer do?

An environmental lawyer advises on consents, clearances and waste authorisations, replies to pollution board notices, and represents clients in appeals, NGT cases, High Court writs and environmental prosecutions. They also help residents and RWAs file effective pollution complaints.

Can I get an environmental lawyer online consultation?

Yes. Most environmental matters turn on documents, so an online consultation works well if you send the notice, consent orders and monitoring reports in advance. Hearings before boards and the NGT can often be attended by video.

Where do I complain about pollution from a nearby factory?

Start with a written complaint to the state pollution control board with photographs and any lab reports, and copy the CPCB and district magistrate. If the board does not act, you can approach the NGT or file a public nuisance complaint before the magistrate.

Is operating without consent to operate a criminal offence?

It has traditionally been an offence under the Water and Air Acts. Recent amendments converted many contraventions into monetary penalties decided by an adjudicating officer, but the position differs between Acts and states, so check the current provision for your unit.

How long do I have to appeal against a pollution board order?

An appeal to the appellate authority under the Water or Air Act is generally to be filed within 30 days. An appeal to the NGT under section 16 is also 30 days from communication of the order, with up to 60 more days for sufficient cause.

Can the pollution control board cut my electricity and water?

Yes. Under section 33A of the Water Act, section 31A of the Air Act and section 5 of the EP Act, the board can direct closure and stoppage of electricity and water. Such directions can be challenged by appeal, and revocation can be sought after corrective work.

What is environmental compensation and can it be challenged?

Environmental compensation is an amount demanded from a polluter for environmental damage, usually calculated by a CPCB formula based on the industry category, scale, duration and location. It can be challenged before the NGT on facts and on the calculation.

Can directors be prosecuted for pollution by a company?

Yes. Persons in charge of and responsible for the company's business at the time of the offence can be prosecuted, but they can show the offence occurred without their knowledge or despite due diligence. Their actual role in the company is the starting point of the defence.

Which environmental cases go to the NGT and which to the High Court?

The NGT hears matters under the seven statutes in its Schedule I, including the Water, Air and EP Acts and forest conservation law. Wildlife Act and Indian Forest Act matters, and constitutional challenges, generally go to the High Court.

What is CAQM and does it affect businesses in Delhi NCR?

CAQM is the Commission for Air Quality Management set up under the CAQM Act 2021 for Delhi NCR and adjoining areas. It issues binding directions on fuels, DG sets, construction dust and industry, and enforces GRAP restrictions that can stop activities at short notice.

Do I need an environmental lawyer to buy an industrial property?

It is advisable. Environmental liabilities, pending notices and NGT cases, and site contamination can pass to a buyer or affect a lender's security, and consents usually need fresh approval or intimation on change of ownership.

How much does an environmental lawyer charge?

Fees depend on the work involved, from a single notice reply to a contested NGT case, and are agreed in writing after seeing the papers. Bar Council rules do not allow fees to be advertised, so this website does not quote amounts.