The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

Act No. 06

23-Mar-1974

Section 1 — Short title, application and commence ment

1. Short title, application and commence ment.

(1)This Act may be called the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.

(2)It applies in the first instance to the whole of the States of Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pr adesh, Rajasthan, Tripura and West Bengal and the Union territories; and it shall apply to such other State which adopts this Act by resolution passed in that behalf under clause ( 1) of article 252 of the Constitution.

(3)It shall come into force, at once in the States of Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tripura and West Bengal and in the Union territories, and in any other State which adopts this Act under clause ( 1) of arti cle 252 of the Constitution on the date of such adoption and any reference in this Act to the commencement of this Act shall, in relation to any State or Union territory, mean the date on which this Act comes into force in such State or Union territory.

Section 2 — Definitions

2. Definitions. -In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, -

(a)“Board” means the Central Board or a State Board; 1[(b) “Central Board” means the Central Pollution Control Board constituted under section 3;]

(c)“member” means a member of a Board and i ncludes the chairman thereof; 2[(d) “occupier”, in relation to any factory or premises, means the person who has control over the affairs of the factory or the premises, and includes, in relation to any substance, the person in possession of the substance; ]

Section 2 — Constitution of Central Boards

2. Constitution of Central Boards.

(1)The Central Government shall, with effect from such date (being a date not later than six months of the commencement of this Act in the States of Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tripura and West Bengal and in the Union territories) as it may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint, constitute a Central Board to be called the 4[Central Pollution Control Board] to exercise the powers conferred on and perform the functions assigned to that Board u nder this Act.

(2)The Central Board shall consist of the following members, namely: -

(a)a full -time chairman, being a person having special knowledge or practical experience in respect of 5[matters relating to environmental protection] or a person having knowledge and experience in administering institutions dealing with the matters aforesaid, to be nominated by the Central Government;