Sections 30 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Three sections deal with works and emergencies. Section 30 lets a State Board execute works that a consent condition required but the occupier did not carry out, and recover the expenses. Section 31 requires the person in charge of a place to tell the Board at once about an accidental discharge. Section 32 lets the Board act immediately where polluting matter is in a stream, well or on land.
This article is current as amended up to the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Amendment Act, 2024 (these sections were not changed by it; the penalty for breaching section 32 orders, in section 41A, was substituted). Later amendments and notifications should be checked. For help in setting up an incident reporting procedure, see our compliance documentation service.
Section 30: if a consent condition requires work and it is not done in time, the Board may serve a notice of not less than thirty days, and if still not done may do the work itself and recover the expenses with interest as arrears of land revenue. Section 31: the person in charge of a place must forthwith intimate an accidental discharge of poisonous, noxious or polluting matter to the Board and prescribed authorities. Section 32: where immediate action is needed, the Board may, for reasons recorded in writing, remove the matter, mitigate the pollution and issue orders restraining the person concerned.
Section 30: works by the Board
Section 30(1). Where conditions imposed when granting consent under section 25 or section 26 "require such person to execute any work in connection therewith and such work has not been executed within such time as may be specified in this behalf", the State Board "may serve on the person concerned a notice requiring him within such time (not being less than thirty days) as may be specified in the notice to execute the work specified therein."
Section 30(2). If the person fails to execute the work as the notice requires, then "after the expiration of the time specified in the said notice, the State Board may itself execute or cause to be executed such work."
Section 30(3). "All expenses incurred by the State Board for the execution of the aforesaid work, together with interest, at such rate as the State Government may, by order, fix, from the date when a demand for the expenses is made until it is paid, may be recovered by that Board from the person concerned, as arrears of land revenue, or of public demand."
The sequence is: a condition requiring work, a time for the work, a notice with at least thirty days, a failure, the Board doing the work, a demand, and recovery with interest. Two points for a plant. The thirty-day notice period is a minimum, so a shorter notice would not meet section 30(1). And the interest rate is for the State Government to fix, so the Act prints no rate.
Section 31: intimation of an accidental discharge
Section 31(1). If at any place where any industry, operation or process, or any treatment and disposal system or any extension or addition thereto is being carried on, "due to accident or other unforeseen act or event, any poisonous, noxious or polluting matter is being discharged, or is likely to be discharged into a stream or well or sewer or on land" and, as a result, the water in any stream or well "is being polluted, or is likely to be polluted", then "the person incharge of such place shall forthwith intimate the occurrence of such accident, act or event to the State Board and such other authorities or agencies as may be prescribed."
Section 31(2). Where a local authority operates any sewerage system or sewage works, the same duty applies to the local authority as to the person in charge of an industrial place.
Key features:
- Trigger: an accident or other unforeseen act or event, with discharge that is happening or likely, and resulting or likely pollution of a stream or well.
- Who: the person in charge of the place, and a local authority for sewerage systems.
- When: "forthwith". The Act gives no number of hours.
- To whom: the State Board and other authorities or agencies as prescribed.
The same moment is addressed by section 9 of the Environment (Protection) Act, which also requires prevention or mitigation and assistance, and by the Public Liability Insurance Act for accidents involving hazardous substances. See section 9 of the EP Act and our PLI Act guide. A single event can engage several statutes, so the incident file should satisfy each.
Section 32: emergency measures
Section 32(1). "Where it appears to the State Board that any poisonous, noxious or polluting matter is present in any stream or well or on land by reason of the discharge of such matter in such stream or well or on such land or has entered into that stream or well due to any accident or other unforeseen act or event, and if the Board is of opinion that it is necessary or expedient to take immediate action, it may for reasons to be recorded in writing, carry out such operations as it may consider necessary" for:
| Clause | Purpose |
|---|---|
| (a) | Removing the matter from the stream, well or land and disposing of it as the Board considers appropriate |
| (b) | Remedying or mitigating any pollution caused by its presence in the stream or well |
| (c) | Issuing orders immediately restraining or prohibiting the person concerned from discharging any poisonous, noxious or polluting matter into the stream, well or land, or from making insanitary use of the stream or well |
Section 32(2). The power "does not include the power to construct any works other than works of a temporary character which are removed on or before the completion of the operations."
Notes:
- The Board must have an opinion that immediate action is necessary or expedient, and must record reasons in writing.
- Orders under clause (c) bind the person concerned at once. Failure to comply attracts the penalty in section 41A. See sections 41 and 42, which gives the wording that applies in your State.
- The limit in sub-section (2). The Board may build only temporary works that are removed by the end of the operations.
- Costs. The text of section 32 does not itself say how the Board's costs are recovered. Check the other provisions of the Act and the rules before assuming a recovery route.
A failure to intimate an accident under section 31 is a ground for penalty under section 42(1)(e); see sections 41 and 42.
An incident-ready plant
- Name the person in charge on every shift who will intimate.
- List the recipients: the State Board and the other authorities or agencies prescribed.
- Log the time the event was noticed and the time of intimation.
- Be ready for an order under section 32(1)(c) to stop a discharge at once.
- Close out consent works on time. Missed works under a consent condition can end with the Board executing them and recovering the cost.
- Cross-check statutes: the EP Act, the PLI Act and the Water Act can all apply to the same event.
An example
A storage tank at Godavari Agro Chemicals Limited cracks overnight and a pesticide solution flows toward a drain that joins a stream. The night supervisor, the person in charge of the place, informs the Board and the other prescribed authorities at once, and logs the time. The Board forms the opinion that immediate action is needed and, recording its reasons in writing, removes matter from the stream and issues an order restraining further discharge. The company complies with the order the same day. Separately, an earlier consent condition required the company to build a secondary containment by a given date; it had not, and the Board had served a thirty-day notice, so the company now completes the work to avoid section 30(2).
Need help with incident procedures?
An accident file that ties the Water Act, the EP Act and other duties together saves time when it matters. Our compliance documentation team can help you prepare incident reporting formats, contact lists and consent-work trackers.
Key takeaways
- Section 30 lets the Board execute works required by consent conditions after a notice of at least thirty days, and recover expenses with interest as arrears of land revenue.
- Section 31 requires the person in charge of the place to intimate an accidental discharge forthwith to the Board and prescribed authorities.
- Section 32 lets the Board take immediate action for reasons recorded in writing, including restraining orders, with only temporary works allowed.
- Penalties for breaching section 32 orders and for failing to intimate are in sections 41A and 42.
Read next
- Sections 33 to 33B: court application, closure directions and the NGT appeal
- Sections 41 and 42: penalties for non-compliance and certain acts
- Section 9 of the EP Act: accidental discharge and intimation
- Section 25: consent to establish and operate
Disclaimer: Based on the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 and the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 as amended by the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 (in force for these Acts from 1 April 2024), the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 as amended by its Amendment Act of 2024 (which applies only in the States and Union territories it names and in States that adopt it), and the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 as amended by the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021, as consulted on 3 October 2026. Later amendments, rules and notifications should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.