Pollution is one of the global environmental issues which poses a threat to all the countries in the world including India. As per the survey done by IQ Air in 2020,India was the 3rd most polluted country in the world.In India there are various environmental laws enacted with the intention of controlling pollution. The word “Environment” includes Air and Water. To control air and water pollution there are two key enactments in India:

1-     Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981

2-     Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

Both these Acts were notified by Central Government but they are implemented by Pollution Control Boards of the States.

Industry is the leading cause of the pollution in India. To control and monitor the pollution originated from industries State Pollution Control Boards have made it mandatory that every industry shall obtain CTE (Consent to Establish) and CTO (Consent to Operate) under section 21 of Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 and section 25 of Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974. However State Pollution Control Boards give relaxation to the industries from this requirement on basis of industry’s category (Red, Orange, Green and White).

In Maharashtra CTE (Consent to Establish) and CTO (Consent to Operate) under both the Acts are obtained by submitting an online application along with necessary attachments.

There was a massive fire in an industry named Visakha Solvents Ltd. (Vishakhapatnam) and after learning from that accident Maharashtra Pollution Control Board has ordered that factories/establishments which store/handle/process the Hazardous Chemicals shall obtain permission from the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health (DISH) before going for CTE/CTO/Renewal..

Now permission taken from the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health (DISH) shall be attached with the application being filed for CTE/CTO/Renewal.

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