CGWA PIL Lawyer

If your unit or project faces an issue of groundwater NOC (cgwa), borewells and rainwater harvesting, this guide explains your obligations, your options and the time limits that matter. Legals365 is the legal platform of Advocate B.K. Singh and associates, who appear before pollution control boards, the NGT and the courts.

In short. Industries, infrastructure projects, group housing societies, hotels, hospitals and other bulk users need a No Objection Certificate before drawing groundwater, from the Central Ground Water Authority or, in states with their own law, the state authority. Agriculture and household drinking use are generally exempt. Drawing water without a valid NOC invites sealing of borewells and environmental compensation, and rainwater harvesting is a common NOC and building plan condition.

Groundwater looks free until a notice arrives. A factory that has run its borewells for years, a group housing society that relies on tubewells, a builder pumping out water to dig a basement, or a packaged drinking water unit can all be told that the extraction is illegal, that the borewells will be sealed and that environmental compensation must be paid for every cubic metre drawn without permission.

This page explains who needs a groundwater NOC, which authority grants it in different states, what the NOC conditions require (meters, piezometers, telemetry, water audits and recharge), what happens when borewells are found running without permission, how to answer a show cause notice and how rainwater harvesting obligations work. The authority, industry and city sections of this page add the local detail; the legal framework below applies across India, with the state differences flagged.

Main law

Environment (Protection) Act 1986, section 3(3) (CGWA was constituted under it in 1997); CGWA Guidelines to regulate and control ground water extraction in India, notified on 24 September 2020 and amended since; state groundwater laws such as the Uttar Pradesh Ground Water (Management and Regulation) Act 2019 and the Haryana Water Resources (Conservation, Regulation and Management) Authority Act 2020; building bye-laws for rainwater harvesting

Authority

Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) in states and union territories without their own groundwater regulator; state groundwater authorities or departments elsewhere; district administration and municipal bodies for sealing and enforcement

Who needs NOC

Industries, infrastructure and mining projects (including dewatering), group housing societies and residential projects, commercial users such as hotels, malls and hospitals, bulk water suppliers and tanker operators; agriculture and individual household drinking and domestic use are generally exempt

Validity

Fixed term stated in the NOC; renewal must be applied for before expiry (the guidelines ask for the application in advance, commonly 90 days); drawing water after expiry without renewal is treated as extraction without NOC

Where disputes go

Show cause hearing before the authority; review or appeal under the guidelines or state law; NGT application under section 14 of the NGT Act; writ petition in the High Court

What a groundwater NOC is and who needs one

A groundwater NOC is permission to extract a stated quantity of groundwater, per day and per year, from specified borewells or tubewells at a specified site, on conditions. In most of India it is granted by the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA), which was constituted in 1997 under section 3(3) of the Environment (Protection) Act 1986 after the Supreme Court's directions in the M.C. Mehta litigation. Its current framework is the set of guidelines notified on 24 September 2020, amended from time to time.

The users who need an NOC are, broadly, industries (new and existing, including expansions), infrastructure projects, mining projects, group housing societies and residential projects, commercial establishments such as hotels, malls, hospitals and institutions, and bulk water suppliers who sell groundwater by tanker. Projects that need to pump out groundwater to dig foundations or run a mine (dewatering) also need permission, even if they do not use the water.

Agricultural use and the use of groundwater by individual households for drinking and domestic purposes are generally exempt, as are rural drinking water schemes and armed forces establishments, with small users in the micro and small enterprise sector given relief up to a modest daily limit. Exemptions are read narrowly. A house that runs a commercial car wash or a paying-guest business on a household borewell is not a domestic user for this purpose.

The legal framework in brief

CGWA or the state authority: who grants the NOC where you are

The first question in any groundwater matter is which authority has jurisdiction, because the procedure, fees, portal and penalties differ. Several states have passed their own groundwater laws and set up their own regulators; in those states the state authority grants permissions and CGWA steps back for most categories. In states without their own law, CGWA's guidelines and online portal apply.

In Delhi NCR the answer differs across the borders. Uttar Pradesh regulates through its 2019 Act and the state groundwater department, so a factory or society in Noida or Ghaziabad applies there. Haryana regulates through the Haryana Water Resources Authority. In Delhi, action against illegal borewells has long involved the district administration (Deputy Commissioners and SDMs, who seal borewells) and the Delhi Jal Board, working within CGWA's framework and under NGT directions. Check which office handles your category before you file, because an application to the wrong authority does not protect you.

Whichever authority applies, the core ideas are similar: permission before extraction, metering, reporting, charges based on how stressed the area is, and compensation for illegal extraction. The lessons on this page therefore apply across states, even where the forms and names differ.

How different users are treated (broad position)

Safe, semi-critical, critical and over-exploited: why the category of your area matters

Groundwater regulation depends on how stressed the aquifer is. The Central Ground Water Board and the states periodically assess each assessment unit (usually a block, mandal or taluka) and classify it as safe, semi-critical, critical or over-exploited, depending on how much of the annual recharge is being extracted. Large parts of Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, western UP and Rajasthan are in the critical or over-exploited categories.

The category affects almost everything. Abstraction charges per cubic metre rise as the category worsens. In over-exploited areas, new water-intensive industries (packaged drinking water units, for example) face restrictions or refusal, expansions are scrutinised closely and the authority may insist on reuse, recycling or alternative sources before allowing groundwater. The quantity allowed is usually tied to the minimum genuinely needed, after accounting for treated wastewater reuse.

Categories change with each assessment. A unit that obtained its NOC when its block was semi-critical can find, at renewal, that the block is now over-exploited and the conditions are tighter. Plan for that when the NOC is first granted, not at the last minute before renewal.

How to apply for a groundwater NOC

The broad sequence, whether on the CGWA portal or a state system, is:

1. Confirm jurisdiction and category

   Check whether CGWA or a state authority has jurisdiction and the current category of your assessment unit. This decides the form, the charges and whether your use is allowed at all.

2. Work out the real requirement

   Calculate daily and annual water demand, with a water balance showing fresh water, recycled water and losses. Overstating the requirement invites queries; understating it means you will exceed the NOC quantity later.

3. Gather site and technical documents

   Collect land documents, site plan with borewell locations and coordinates, existing and proposed well details, a hydrogeological report where required, the consent to establish or building plan sanction, and groundwater quality test reports.

4. File the online application and pay charges

   Submit the application with documents and pay the processing fee and any applicable charges. Keep the application number; it is your proof that you applied, though it is not permission to extract.

5. Respond to queries and site inspection

   Answer queries in writing and support them with documents. Officials may inspect the site to check borewells, meters and recharge structures.

6. Comply with NOC conditions from day one

   Install meters with telemetry and piezometers where required, start the logbook, file the compliance reports and pay abstraction charges on time. Most later disputes are about conditions, not the NOC itself.

Conditions in the NOC: meters, piezometers, water audits and reports

An NOC is only as good as the compliance with its conditions. The usual conditions are tamper-proof digital water flow meters on each borewell, often with telemetry so the readings go to the authority; piezometers to monitor water levels, with digital recorders for larger users; periodic groundwater quality testing at a recognised laboratory; a water audit by larger industrial users; rainwater harvesting or recharge where specified; and self-compliance reports filed online within the time given.

Groundwater abstraction charges are payable on the quantity drawn, at rates linked to the category of the area and the type of use. Failure to pay, a broken meter, a piezometer that was never installed, or extraction above the permitted quantity can each lead to a show cause notice, environmental compensation and, in serious cases, cancellation of the NOC and sealing.

Keep a simple compliance file: the NOC, meter calibration certificates, monthly meter readings with photographs, piezometer data, quality reports, audit reports and payment receipts. When Advocate B.K. Singh reviews a groundwater notice, the first thing he asks for is the meter reading history, because the authority's calculation of compensation usually rests on the quantity it assumes was drawn, and real readings are the best answer to an assumption.

Renewal, expansion, change of use and change of ownership

The NOC is valid only for the period written on it. Apply for renewal in advance, with a compliance report, as the guidelines require; the authority treats extraction after expiry without a timely renewal application as extraction without NOC and calculates compensation from the date of expiry. Diary the expiry date alongside the consent to operate expiry, because boards often check one against the other.

An expansion of production, an increase in the number of borewells, a change in the purpose of use (from industrial to commercial, for example) or a change in the quantity needs a fresh or modified NOC before the change, not after. Adding a borewell quietly is one of the most common reasons a renewal is refused.

On a sale of the unit or the handover of a residential project, the NOC does not automatically pass to the new owner or the society. The buyer or the society should apply for transfer or a fresh NOC in its own name. Housing societies in particular should insist that the builder hands over the NOC file, meter records and recharge structure details along with the other documents at handover.

Illegal borewells, sealing and environmental compensation

When borewells are found running without a valid NOC, or in breach of its conditions, the authority or the district administration can seal them, direct disconnection of the pump and demand environmental compensation. The guidelines provide a formula for compensation that depends on the quantity extracted, the category of the area, the type of use and the period of violation. Where the quantity is not known because there was no meter, the authority may estimate it from pump capacity and hours of running, which often produces a large figure.

Sealing drives are frequent in cities facing water shortage, often prompted by NGT orders or complaints. In Delhi, SDMs have carried out repeated drives against illegal borewells, and similar action takes place in Gurugram, Noida and other NCR towns. Unauthorised drilling agencies can also be proceeded against.

If your borewells have been sealed, do not break the seal; tampering with an official seal makes the problem much worse. Apply for an NOC or regularisation where the rules allow, answer the notice with evidence of actual use, and challenge the compensation calculation where it rests on assumptions. For how compensation demands are challenged generally, see our page on environmental compensation.

Show cause notices, hearings and challenges

A groundwater show cause notice usually alleges extraction without NOC, extraction beyond the permitted quantity, failure to install meters or piezometers, failure to file compliance reports or non-payment of charges. It proposes action such as cancellation, sealing or compensation and gives a short time to reply. Read the notice against your NOC and records, ask for the inspection report if it is not attached, and reply point by point with documents.

At the hearing, the strongest arguments are factual: the NOC was valid or a renewal was applied for in time; the meter readings show the actual quantity; the borewell in question is a standby or defunct well; the use is domestic and exempt; or the compensation formula has been applied with the wrong category, period or quantity. Offer a clear, dated plan for anything you accept was missing.

If the final order is adverse, check whether the guidelines or the state law provide a review or appeal and the time for it. Directions of CGWA under section 5 of the EP Act can be appealed to the NGT under section 16(g) of the NGT Act within 30 days, other orders can be questioned before the NGT by an application under section 14 where a substantial environmental question arises, and a writ petition lies before the High Court where jurisdiction, natural justice or the legality of the guidelines is in question. Our pages on show cause notice replies and NGT cases explain these steps.

Rainwater harvesting: what the law requires and how to show compliance

Rainwater harvesting is required in two ways. Building bye-laws in most cities make it compulsory for plots above a threshold size (100 square metres under Delhi's unified building bye-laws, with different thresholds elsewhere) as a condition of plan sanction and occupancy. Separately, groundwater NOCs, consents and environmental clearances often require recharge structures of a specified capacity. Water utilities in some cities give rebates for working systems and levy higher charges where they are missing.

The legal problem is rarely the absence of a design. It is that the recharge pits were built, then silted up, were covered during landscaping or were connected to a sewer line. Inspectors, NGT committees and RWAs now check whether the system works, not just whether it appears in the drawings. A rainwater harvesting system that recharges contaminated runoff into the aquifer can itself be a violation, so industrial units should keep roof water separate from process areas.

To show compliance, keep the approved drawings, completion photographs, a maintenance log with dated desilting records and, for larger systems, a certificate from a hydrogeologist or engineer. Housing societies should make maintenance of recharge structures part of the facility management contract.

Housing societies, builders and RWAs

Group housing societies are among the largest groundwater users in NCR, and among the least prepared for notices. Many depend on borewells because municipal supply is short. The NOC is usually obtained by the builder during construction, sometimes only for the construction phase, and never renewed or transferred after handover. The society then receives a notice for extraction without NOC, with compensation calculated from the date of expiry.

If you are an RWA or apartment owners' association, ask the builder for the groundwater NOC, the meter and piezometer details and the recharge structure drawings, and apply in the society's name as soon as you take over maintenance. Where the builder failed to obtain or renew the NOC, the society can claim the cost from the builder. Depending on the facts, that claim may go to RERA if the project is registered and the obligation arises under the agreement, as explained on our page on RERA complaints, or to the civil court.

Builders, for their part, should obtain dewatering permission before excavation, manage the pumped water lawfully and avoid discharging it into roads and drains, which is a frequent source of complaints. Our page on construction environmental violations covers related issues, and the page on sewage and STP compliance covers treated water reuse, which authorities increasingly expect before they allow more groundwater.

Industries: how groundwater fits with consent and clearance

For an industrial unit, the groundwater NOC sits alongside the consent to operate and, for larger projects, the environmental clearance. The consent order and the EC usually state the source and quantity of water, and the board checks that the groundwater NOC supports it. A mismatch (a consent based on 200 cubic metres a day, an NOC for 100) is a ready ground for a notice from either regulator.

Water-intensive sectors draw the closest attention: packaged drinking water, beverages, paper mills, textiles and dyeing, distilleries, power plants, chemical units and large hotels. These units are expected to show reuse of treated effluent, zero liquid discharge where required, and a falling freshwater intake over time. A water audit that shows real savings is useful evidence at renewal.

If your consent or clearance is up for renewal, review the groundwater position at the same time. Our pages on consent to operate and renewal, environmental clearance and effluent, ETP and ZLD compliance cover the connected permissions.

Abandoned borewells and drilling agencies

Open and abandoned borewells kill children every year, and the law treats them seriously. The Supreme Court laid down safety guidelines in 2010, which state governments and district administrations have built into their own orders: prior intimation before drilling, registration of drilling agencies, signboards and fencing during drilling, steel caps on wells not in use, and proper filling of abandoned wells. Landowners and drilling agencies can face criminal liability under the BNS for negligence if an accident happens.

Drilling agencies are also targets in illegal borewell drives. Many states require them to register and to drill only for users who show an NOC or registration. A landowner who gets a borewell drilled through an unregistered agency, without the required permission, may find both the well and the agency in trouble.

If you have old borewells that are no longer used, have them properly capped or filled by a registered agency and keep the record. It is a small cost compared with the consequences of an accident.

Groundwater compliance checklist

• Confirm whether CGWA or the state authority has jurisdiction over your site
• Check the current category (safe, semi-critical, critical, over-exploited) of your assessment unit
• Keep the NOC, with quantity and borewell details, and diary its expiry date
• Install tamper-proof meters, with telemetry where required, and keep calibration certificates
• Install piezometers where required and record water levels
• Record monthly meter readings with dated photographs
• Test groundwater quality at a recognised laboratory as required
• File self-compliance reports and pay abstraction charges on time
• Maintain rainwater harvesting and recharge structures with a desilting log
• Apply for modification before adding borewells or increasing extraction
• Apply for transfer or a fresh NOC on change of ownership or handover to a society
• Cap or fill unused borewells through a registered agency

Mistakes that cost the most

• Assuming an old borewell is grandfathered. Existing users also need an NOC. Age of the well is not permission.
• Letting the NOC lapse. Compensation runs from the date of expiry if renewal was not applied for in time.
• No meter, or a broken one. Without readings, the authority estimates use from pump capacity, which is almost always higher than reality.
• Adding borewells without modification. Unpermitted wells are the most common reason for cancellation.
• Breaking a seal. Tampering with an official seal turns a regulatory matter into a criminal one.
• Recharge pits that exist only on paper. Inspectors and NGT committees check whether the system works.

What to do this week

Find your groundwater NOC (or confirm you do not have one), check its expiry date and quantity, and compare it with the borewells actually on site and the water figures in your consent order. If meters are missing or broken, fix them now and start recording readings with photographs. If your recharge structures are silted, get them cleaned and log it.

If a notice has arrived, note the reply date, ask for the inspection report and gather meter readings, the NOC history and payment receipts before replying. If borewells have been sealed, leave the seal intact and apply for permission or regularisation. For notices from the pollution control board that often come in the same inspection, see our page on pollution control board notices, and for wider environmental advice our page for an environmental lawyer.

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.

Groundwater permissions and the CGWA

The Central Ground Water Authority regulates how much groundwater industries, projects and commercial users can draw. It was set up in 1997 under section 3(3) of the Environment (Protection) Act 1986, after the Supreme Court directed the Centre to create a body to control groundwater depletion. Its main tool is the no objection certificate for groundwater extraction, issued under guidelines notified in September 2020 and applied for online through the NOCAP portal. Anyone who runs a borewell for an industry, a mining project, an infrastructure project, a housing society, a hotel, a hospital or a mall should assume a NOC is needed unless an exemption clearly applies.

The guidelines exempt some users, mainly individual households drawing water for drinking and domestic use, rural drinking water schemes, agriculture, the armed forces and small units drawing under a set daily limit. Everyone else applies with details of the land, the proposed quantity, the purpose, a hydrogeological report for larger draws, and proof of rainwater harvesting or recharge arrangements. The area matters a great deal. Each block is assessed as safe, semi-critical, critical or over-exploited, and in over-exploited areas new industrial extraction is either refused or allowed only on strict terms. Many blocks in Delhi, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh fall in the stressed categories.

The NOC comes with conditions that are routinely checked: tamper-proof digital flow meters, often with telemetry, piezometers to record water levels, periodic water audits, payment of groundwater abstraction charges, and recharge works. The NOC is valid for a fixed period and must be renewed in time. Drawing water without a NOC, or more than permitted, attracts environmental compensation calculated on the volume and the period of illegal extraction, and the authority or the district administration can seal borewells.

Some states regulate groundwater through their own law and authority, and there the state body issues the permission rather than the CGWA. Uttar Pradesh has its Ground Water (Management and Regulation) Act 2019 and Haryana has a state water resources authority. Before applying, check which authority covers the site, because a NOC from the wrong body does not protect you. In Delhi, illegal borewells are also acted on by the district administration and the Delhi Jal Board, and the NGT has passed repeated orders on unauthorised extraction across the city.

Disputes with the authority usually start with a refusal, a demand for compensation, or a sealing order. The first step is a written representation with the meter readings, the original application and any delay that was not your fault. Because the CGWA works under the Environment (Protection) Act, substantial questions about its orders and about illegal extraction by others often go to the NGT. A writ petition before the High Court is used where the complaint is about procedure, such as no hearing or an unreasoned order. Neighbours and resident groups can also complain about a polluting or over-drawing unit.

Frequently asked questions

Who needs a groundwater NOC from CGWA?

Industries, infrastructure and mining projects, group housing societies, commercial establishments such as hotels and hospitals, and bulk water suppliers generally need an NOC. Agriculture and household drinking and domestic use are generally exempt. In states with their own groundwater law, the NOC comes from the state authority instead.

Do I need permission for a borewell in my house?

Household borewells used only for drinking and domestic purposes are generally exempt from the NOC requirement, but some states and notified areas require registration of the well, and drilling may need prior intimation. Commercial use from the same borewell is not exempt.

What happens if I draw groundwater without an NOC?

The authority can seal the borewells, stop the pumps and demand environmental compensation based on the quantity drawn, the category of the area and the period. Where there is no meter, the quantity may be estimated from pump capacity.

How long is a groundwater NOC valid?

The NOC is valid for the period stated in it, which varies by category of user and area. Apply for renewal in advance with a compliance report, because extraction after expiry without a timely renewal application is treated as extraction without NOC.

Is the CGWA NOC needed in Noida, Ghaziabad or Gurugram?

Uttar Pradesh regulates groundwater under its own 2019 Act, so users in Noida and Ghaziabad apply to the state groundwater department. Haryana regulates through the Haryana Water Resources Authority, so users in Gurugram and Faridabad apply there.

Can a sealed borewell be reopened?

Yes, once the user obtains the required permission or regularisation and complies with the conditions, the authority can order de-sealing. Do not break the seal yourself, as tampering with an official seal is a separate offence.

Does a construction project need permission for dewatering?

Yes. Pumping out groundwater for basements, foundations or mining generally needs permission, with conditions on the quantity and on how the pumped water is used or disposed of. Discharging it into roads and drains without permission draws complaints and penalties.

Who is responsible for the groundwater NOC in a housing society, the builder or the RWA?

The builder usually obtains it during construction. After handover the society or RWA should apply for transfer or a fresh NOC in its own name. If the builder let it lapse before handover, the society may be able to recover resulting costs from the builder.

Is rainwater harvesting compulsory?

Most building bye-laws make it compulsory for plots above a threshold size, and groundwater NOCs, consents and environmental clearances often require recharge structures. The system must actually work; inspectors check maintenance as well as design.

Can environmental compensation for groundwater extraction be challenged?

Yes. It can be challenged at the hearing and then before the NGT or the High Court, especially where the quantity, period or category used in the calculation is wrong. Actual meter readings are the strongest evidence.

What are groundwater abstraction charges?

They are charges payable on the quantity of groundwater drawn under an NOC, at rates that depend on the category of the area and the type of use. Non-payment can lead to cancellation of the NOC.

What should I do about an old unused borewell on my land?

Have it properly capped or filled by a registered drilling agency and keep a record. Open borewells are a serious safety risk, and landowners can face criminal liability if an accident occurs.

Does a housing society or office building need a CGWA NOC for its borewell?

Usually yes, if it draws groundwater for common use, because the domestic exemption covers individual households rather than group housing or commercial premises. The society should apply on NOCAP, install a meter and keep its NOC renewed, or arrange piped supply instead.

What happens if a unit has been drawing groundwater without a NOC?

It can be asked to pay environmental compensation for the period of illegal extraction, and its borewells can be sealed. Applying promptly, installing meters and showing recharge works helps when the amount of compensation is being decided.