ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

The Water Cess(Prevention and Control

SUBMITTED TO: SUBMITTED BY:

Dr. ghulam yazdhani SHASHWAT PATHAK

B.A.LL.B (HONS.) {S.F.}

3RD YEAR

Contents

Introduction 3
Provisions of The Water Cess Act 5

Critical Analysis 8

Conclusion 14

Bibliography 16

INTRODUCTION
The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977 aims to provide for the levy and
collection of a cess on water consumed by persons carrying on certain industries and by local
authorities, with a view to augment the resources of the Central Board and the State Boards for

2 | Page
the prevention and control of water pollution constituted under the Water (Prevention and
Control of Pollution) Act, 1974. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977
is a Central Act of Parliament which provides for the levy and collection of cess on water
consumed by industries and local authorities.      The act is applicable to the whole of India
except the State of Jammu and Kashmir. It is an act to augment the resources of the State
Pollution Control Boards

The government formulated this act in 1974 to prevent the pollution of water by industrial,
agricultural and household wastewater that can contaminate our water sources. Wastewaters with
high levels of pollutants that enter wetlands, rivers, lakes, wells as well as the sea are serious
health hazards.

Controlling the point sources by monitoring the levels of different pollutants is one way to
prevent pollution, by punishing the polluter. Individuals can also do several things to reduce
water pollution such as using biodegradable chemicals for household use, reducing the use of
pesticides in gardens, and identifying polluting sources at work places and in industrial units
where oil are or other petroleum products and heavy metals are used.

Excessive organic matter, sediments and infecting organism from hospital wastes can also
pollute our water. Citizen needs to develop a watchdog force to inform authorities to appropriate
actions against different types of water pollution. However, preventing pollution is better than
trying to cure the problems it has created, or punishing offenders.

The main objectives of the Water Act are to provide for prevention, control and abatement of
water pollution and the maintenance or restoration of the wholesomeness of water. It is designed
to assess pollution levels and punish polluters. The Central Government and State Government
have set up PCBs to monitor water pollution.

The Water Act, 1974 with certain amendments in 1978 is an extensive legislation with more than
sixty sections for the prevention and control of water pollution. Among other things, the Act
provides for constitution of central and State Boards for preventing water pollution, power to
take water samples and their analysis, discharge of sewage or trade effluents, appeals, revision,
minimum and maximum penalties, publication of names of offenders, offences by companies
and Government departments, cognizance of offences, water laboratories, analysis etc.

3 | Page
Prevention and control of water pollution is achieved through a permit or ‘consent
administration’ procedure. Discharge of effluents is permitted by obtaining the consent of the
State Water Board, subject to any condition they specify. Any person who fails to comply with a
directive of the State cannot, however, entertain in suit under this Act unless the suit is brought
by, or with the sanction of the State Board.

Water Pollution Cess Act, 1977 According to this Act, anyone consuming water has to pay
certain amount of cess depending on:

1. Whether the industry is using water for industrial cooling, spraying in mine pits or boilers
feed,

2. For domestic purposes.

 In processing, whereby water gets polluted and pollutants are easily biodegradable.

4. In processing whereby water gets polluted and the pollutants are not easily bio-degradable and
are toxic.

Those industries that had installed a suitable treatment plant for the treatment of industrial
effluents can get a rebate of 70 per cent on the cess payable.

PROVISIONS OF THE WATER CESS (PREVENTION &

Section 2 :

Section 2 of the Act defines:

4 | Page
(a)   ‘’Local authorities’’ to mean any municipal corporation or a municipal council or a
cantonment board or any other body, entrusted with the duty of supplying water under the law by
or under which it is constituted.

(b)   ‘’Industry’’ – to include any operation or process, or treatment and disposal system, which
consumes water or discharges sewage effluent or trade effluent  but does not include any hydel
power unit.

 Section 3:

The Act provides that the State Pollution Control Boards and Committees shall levy and collect
Cess from persons carrying on any industry and from all local authorities for the purposes of and
utilization under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution ) Act 1974.

The Cess shall be assessed on the basis of water consumed by the person or local authority and
would also include supply of water.

It also prescribes for higher rates of cess in the event of the assesse not meeting the standards
prescribed under the Environment Protection Act 1986 or with the provisions of Section 25 of
the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974.

If a user liable to pay cess is taking water from another person or authority which is also liable to
pay cess, then the end user will pay and the earlier users (suppliers in this instant) shall not be
liable to pay.

 Section 4:

Provides for the affixing of Meters and prescribes that for measuring the quantity of water, used
by any person or any industry or by local authorities, the persons liable to pay cess should install
water meters of such standards and at such positions as may be prescribed. If this is not done
then the Central Government (presently the duty of the State Boards) shall install the same and
recover the costs from the concerned industry or local authority.

Section 5:

5 | Page
Of the Act lays down that every person liable to pay cess shall have to submit cess returns in the
proforma and periodicity as prescribed for this purpose. If the said cess return is not submitted
then the Assessing authority shall send a notice requiring the person concerned to submit the said
returns before such dates as may be prescribed for this purpose.

Section 6:

Under section-6, the authority or the officer to whom the return has been furnished, shall after
making enquiry and satisfying himself that the particulars stated in the returns are correct, assess
the amount of cess  payable by the concerned person or industry or local authority and issue
necessary cess assessment orders.

In case the return is not furnished then the assessing authority after making necessary inquiries
shall make the necessary assessment orders. All assessment orders shall specify a due date for
payment.

Cess shall be collected and remitted to the Central Government. Presently the Member Secretary,
State Pollution Control Board is the assessing and collecting authority.

Section 7:

Of the Act makes a provision for a rebate of 25% of the cess payable, if the person or authority
liable to pay cess  installs any plant for the treatment of effluents .

This rebate, however, shall not be given if the person fails to comply with provisions of Water
(Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974 or any of the standards prescribed under the
Environment Protection Act. Rebate shall also not be provided if the person or local authority
consumes water in excess of the maximum quantity prescribed under the Water Cess Rules.

Section 9:

Under section-9, any officer or authority of the state government, duly empowered on this behalf
can enter any premises or any industry at any reasonable time for carrying out the functions as
according to this Act including the testing of the correctness of the meters affixed under section-
4.

6 | Page
Section 10:

Under section-10, if any person or authority fails to pay the amount of cess to the State
Government, within the date specified in the order, then they have to pay an interest of two
percent for every month or part of a month on the amount payable by them to the State
Government.

Section 11:

Section-11 prescribes that if any person or industry or any local authority fails to pay the cess
arrears within the specified time, then a penalty not exceeding the amount of cess in arrears can
be imposed on the person, industry or local authority by the assessingauthority after giving
proper opportunity to be heard .

Section 12

Under section-12, any amount due under this act, including any interest or penalty, under
section-10 and 11, may be recovered by the Central Government from any person, or industry or
any local authority as arrear of land revenue.

Section 13:

Under section-13, any person, industry or local authority, aggrieved by the order of assessment
or penalty shall have a right to make an appeal in such form and manner and within such time as
may be prescribed (30 days of receipt of order of assessment or penalty; extendable by a
maximum of 15 days at the discretion of the Apellate authority).

Section 14:

7 | Page
Whoever furnishes any return knowing or having reason to believe, the same to be false shall be
punishable with up to six months imprisonment or fine of 1000 Rs or with both. The same penal
provisions apply to persons evading or attempting to evade the payment of cess.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Water-cess evaluation and gathering have turned out to be deficient in getting nearby bodies and
very industrialized states like Maharashtra to pay their duty.

Despite the fact that in excess of 200 Union and state laws can be translated one way or the other
to ensure the earth, they end up being insufficient. A model is the Water (Prevention and Control
of Pollution) Act, 1974, which was once acclaimed as the harbinger of another natural time as a
result of its broad ambit. Other than characterizing water pollution extensively, it accommodated
the foundation of Union and state water pollution control sheets.

In any case, authorization of the demonstration turned into an issue on the grounds that however
the demonstration presented managerial powers on the loads up, it was quiet on their financing,
abandoning it to the impulses of state governments. The Union government at that point ordered
the Water (Prevention and Pollution Control) Cess Act in 1977 to fund the water pollution
control sheets.

Be that as it may, the cess pulled in a great deal of litigation from enterprises not having any
desire to pay it and has been insufficient to cover even the fundamental, routine managerial costs
of the sheets.

The water cess act has produced a few avoidable legal cases. There is no mechanical unit in the
nation that isn't secured under the demonstration. However, the demonstration's calendar makes
various avoidable questions and reasons.

The demonstration has plainly made a greater number of confusions than elucidations in light of
the fact that numerous businesses contend they are not secured by it. On the off chance that the
administration plans to keep select ventures (atomic industry, for instance) free from a water-cess

8 | Page
obligation for regulatory reasons, at that point it would have improved to indicate unmistakably
which businesses are prohibited instead of set up a timetable of classes that are incorporated.

Most likely not in excess of 25 huge water-expending modern foundations in any state really pay
the water cess and they end up contributing up to 90 percent of the complete cess gathered in
each state. Warm power stations are the biggest cess-payers and the others are steel and manure
plants, oil refineries, paper factories and coal mineshafts. In spite of the fact that notable for their
natural pollution, bond, materials, sugar, petrochemicals, synthetic substances, pharmaceuticals,
designing and some other mechanical units don't contribute a lot to add up to cess accumulations.

Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Maharashtra gather extensive cess sums
not just in light of the fact that they have various warm power, steel and manure plants,
refineries, paper factories and other vast water-devouring units, yet in addition since they place
more weight on cess accumulation than different states. In this manner, modern cess evaluations
were the biggest for UP (more than Rs 3 crore), trailed by MP, which is astonishing on the
grounds that the two states are not the country's most mechanical states.

Information on cess accumulation isn't accessible for Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal among
the bigger states, and for Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, Meghalaya, Sikkim
and numerous Union Territories, among the littler ones. On the off chance that we expect the all
out cess appraisals in these states were Rs 1.38 crore for enterprises and Rs 1 crore for nearby
bodies and absolute real cess accumulation was Rs 1.87 crore, at that point based on accessible
information, the likely aggregate for 1991-92 can be evaluated as Rs 21 crore of complete
evaluations issued - Rs 11 crore from businesses and Rs 10 crore from neighborhood bodies -
and all out water cess gathering in the whole nation at about Rs 9.5 crore.

A marker of the weaknesses in cess evaluations and accumulations is that Maharashtra, in spite
of its abnormal state of industrialization, is just third, with a poor income acknowledgment of
just Rs 1 crore. Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Bihar, which have industrialized
impressively in the previous two decades, have cess appraisals floating around just Rs 60 lakh.
These complete yearly appraisals demonstrate that something is genuinely wrong in the manner
the water cess act is executed.

9 | Page
When we contrast cess gathering and cess evaluation, we discover the acknowledgment of the
cess in Assam, Haryana and Karnataka in 1991-92 was higher than the complete appraisals due
to acknowledgment of overdue debts.

With the exception of Haryana and Punjab, just a couple of the neighborhood specialists have
been providing water for household purposes pay water cess. In Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya
Pradesh, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, no metropolitan body or nearby body is happy to pay
the cess. And, mindful of its purposelessness, no evaluation request is even issued for
neighborhood experts in Assam, Bihar and Orissa.

In Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and some different states, evaluation orders are
issued to just those neighborhood experts that are probably going to pay. In every one of these
states, the whole cess accumulation is basically from ventures. Of the all out assessed water cess
gathering of Rs 9.5 crore in 1991-92, enterprises paid Rs 8 crore, with just Rs 1.5 crore gathered
from neighborhood specialists, principally in Haryana and Punjab and a couple from different
states.

Water cess liabilities of nearby experts, whenever collected sensibly, are huge. For instance,
1991-92 evaluation requests on neighborhood experts in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and
Maharashtra were impressively bigger (twofold in Maharashtra and four-overlay in Kerala) than
for modern units. In any case, most neighborhood bodies basically guarantee they have no assets
to pay the cess. Since the accounts of neighborhood bodies are controlled by the Union and state
governments, this issue should be settled at the Union government level unequivocally.

Procedural problems
Appraisal experts in different states have set up explicit groups comprising of pollution control
board staff to help in cess evaluation and gathering. A few of these units are driven by senior
researchers or specialists. And, in many states, there is just a single appraisal cell, which is
situated at the state board central station.

Nonetheless, in Tamil Nadu, water cess duties have been decentralized and depended to
provincial offices. Shockingly, dependable water cess evaluations are as yet impractical in light
of the fact that, even 15 years after the section of the water cess act, under 5 percent of the
mechanical units have introduced water meters and, after its all said and done, finding a working

10 | Page
water meter is an irregularity. Therefore, concoction businesses releasing poisonous and non-
biodegradable toxins pay next to no cess on the grounds that their water utilization is low
contrasted with paper factories, steel factories or power plants, which may not release harmful or
unmanageable contaminations.

Environmental cess

Today, specialists state a total upgrade of the water cess is necessary to change over it from an
absolutely water utilization put together duty to one based with respect to asset utilization and
environmental effect brought about by an industry.

Regardless of whether the cess were to be founded on utilization of water alone, it ought to be
constrained characteristic asset. The water cess is gotten a kick out of the chance to water
pollution and warm power stations battle they are not at risk to pay it since they don't cause any
water pollution. Such units much be persuaded that the cess is exacted on the utilization of a
profitable environmental asset not simply on the release of pollution effluents. This should be
elucidated by revising the demonstration with the goal that common asset are not viewed as
perfect blessings accessible to any individual who can get them.

The nation's regular assets are in a basic state and are winding up genuinely debase in numerous
zones. Numerous today stress the requirement for the orderly administration of characteristic
assets and likewise the need to instill a readiness to pay a cess in their utilization to back such
administration. Be that as it may, such a need should likewise be viewed as reasonable by all,
including businesses and neighborhood specialists.

For this, there is a proposition to supplant water cess with an environmental cess. Sadly, there are
issue with putting together as environmental cess with respect to the degree of environmental
corruption caused. Such a duty would demand dependable measurement, which might be
troublesome, particularly on account of air.

Not at all like the present water cess, the proposed environmental cess should think about such
normal assets as land, minerals, water, air and biomass. Measuring the utilization of every one of

11 | Page
these will require a critical and cognizant exertion by the units expending them and fixing rates
for classifications of reflection, use or debasement will likewise not be simple or schedule.

The proposed environmental cess is thusly, at any rate at this stage, not intended to be a sensible
pay or repayment of the natural estimation of the asset devoured or the asset corruption caused. It
is just proposed to be a methods for raising assets to fund the errand of arranging asset protection
and the exercises of the pollution control sheets. The environmental cess is expected to cover not
simply estimated or revealed use or debasement but rather likewise the probable or potential use
or corruption of assets.

The base cess rate for an environment inviting industry is proposed to be a pitiful 0.01 percent of
the gross estimation of an organization's monetary turnover and, if there should be an occurrence
of an environment influencing industry, it can go up to 0.20 percent. A cess on this premise
could yield Rs 60-100 crore for each annum from ventures alone. And, it very well may be relied
upon to serve significantly the essential target of teaching a feeling of significant worth and
worry for the amount and nature of our regular assets.

Notwithstanding, leaving the dispensing or utilization of an environmental cess altogether at the

Alterations realized in late 1991 took into consideration as much as 50 percent of the cess
gathered to be utilized for different unessential purposes, for example, awards to the CPCB; state
pollution control sheets where there is next to zero cess accumulation; states meeting cess
accumulation focuses; to urge mechanical units to introduce pollution control gear, and for
purposes the Union service of environment and backwoods may think about fit. The water cess
rates were likewise reexamined as of late to increase assets made accessible by the water cess

Local decisions
The environment, or even water, isn't the property of the administration of India and choices
concerning the environment are best made at the neighborhood level. Judiciously, the greater
part of the cess gathered in a state ought to be put at the transfer of the state's environmental
expert, deducting just little sums for accumulation costs.

12 | Page
With cess rates as of late reexamined and improved or as proposed for the new environmental
cess, the disposal of a few little cess payers - a bigger number of little and medium scale units
don't get much in cess income - will diminish accumulation expenses to a figure well underneath
the 7.5 percent gave in the underlying cess rules.

In the event that the cess exacted on nearby bodies remains unaltered, the all out net gathering
would indicate more than Rs 100 crore every year, which might be adequate to cover the money
related requirements of pollution control sheets, as additionally an escalated and successful
exertion to deductively screen and plan asset preservation.

The proposed environmental cess would in any case have Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and
Maharashtra as the main patrons, trailed by Tamil Nadu, Bihar and West Bengal. This again will
be altogether consistent and characteristic of the more prominent requirement for environment
protection in these particular states.

13 | Page
CONCLUSION

The government formulated this act in 1974 to prevent the pollution of water by industrial,
agricultural and household wastewater that can contaminate our water sources. Wastewaters with
high levels of pollutants that enter wetlands, rivers, lakes, wells as well as the sea are serious
health hazards.

Controlling the point sources by monitoring the levels of different pollutants is one way to
prevent pollution, by punishing the polluter. Individuals can also do several things to reduce
water pollution such as using biodegradable chemicals for household use, reducing the use of
pesticides in gardens, and identifying polluting sources at work places and in industrial units
where oil are or other petroleum products and heavy metals are used.

The environment, or even water, isn't the property of the administration of India and choices
concerning the environment are best made at the neighborhood level. Judiciously, the greater
part of the cess gathered in a state ought to be put at the transfer of the state's environmental
expert, deducting just little sums for accumulation costs.

Regardless of whether the cess were to be founded on utilization of water alone, it ought to be
constrained characteristic asset. The water cess is gotten a kick out of the chance to water
pollution and warm power stations battle they are not at risk to pay it since they don't cause any
water pollution. Such units much be persuaded that the cess is exacted on the utilization of a
profitable environmental asset not simply on the release of pollution effluents. This should be
elucidated by revising the demonstration with the goal that common asset are not viewed as
perfect blessings accessible to any individual who can get them.

Water-cess evaluation and gathering have turned out to be deficient in getting nearby bodies and
very industrialized states like Maharashtra to pay their duty.

Despite the fact that in excess of 200 Union and state laws can be translated one way or the other
to ensure the earth, they end up being insufficient. A model is the Water (Prevention and Control
of Pollution) Act, 1974, which was once acclaimed as the harbinger of another natural time as a

14 | Page
result of its broad ambit. Other than characterizing water pollution extensively, it accommodated
the foundation of Union and state water pollution control sheets.

In any case, authorization of the demonstration turned into an issue on the grounds that however
the demonstration presented managerial powers on the loads up, it was quiet on their financing,
abandoning it to the impulses of state governments. The Union government at that point ordered
the Water (Prevention and Pollution Control) Cess Act in 1977 to fund the water pollution
control sheets.

The main objectives of the Water Act are to provide for prevention, control and abatement of
water pollution and the maintenance or restoration of the wholesomeness of water. It is designed
to assess pollution levels and punish polluters. The Central Government and State Government
have set up PCBs to monitor water pollution.

15 | Page
BIBLIOGRAPHY & REFRENCES

1. Bare Act on The Water Cess(Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1977.

a) https://www.indiawaterportal.org/articles
b) http://cpcb.nic.in/water-pollution/
c) http://www.mppcb.nic.in/cess_act.htm
d) http://www.arthapedia.in/index.php?
title=Water_(Prevention_and_Control_of_Pollution)_Cess
e) http://moef.gov.in/environment
f) https://www.downtoearth.org.in/indepth

16 | Page