Lok Sabha Question No. 172 (STARRED), answered on 2017-03-14
Subject: Environment Related Offences
Ministry: HOME AFFAIRS
Asked by: POONAM  MAHAJAN

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *172

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 14 TH  MARCH, 2017 / PHALGUNA 23, 1938 (SAKA)

ENVIRONMENT RELATED OFFENCES

*172. SHRIMATI POONAM MAHAJAN:

Will the Minister of HOME AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a)  whether  the  National  Crime  Records  Bureau  (NCRB)  compiles  data  on environment  related  offences  and  if  so,  the  details  thereof  including  the number  of  violations  registered  under  various  Acts  during  the  last  three years, Act and State-wise;

(b) whether NCRB  data  suffers from under-reporting and inadequate coverage  of  laws  whose  violation  would  constitute  a  crime  against  the environment and if so, the details thereof;

(c)  the  action  taken  by  the  Government  to  improve  the  enforcement mechanism to implement laws related to protection of environment; and

(d) whether his Ministry and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change have undertaken adequate consultations to increase the coverage of environmental violations and if so, the details thereof?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS (SHRI HANSRAJ GANGARAM AHIR)

(a) to (d): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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## STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  THE  LOK  SABHA  STARRED QUESTION NO.*172 FOR 14.3.2017.

(a):     Yes,  Madam.  National  Crime  Records  Bureau  (NCRB)  has  started publishing  a  separate  chapter  on  environment  related  offences  (which includes cases registered under the Forest Act, 1927, the Wildlife Protection  Act,  1972,  the  Environmental  (Protection)  Act,  1986,  the  Air (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 and the Water (Prevention & Control  of  Pollution)  Act,  1974  in  its  annual  report  'Crime  in  India'  since 2014  only.  As  per  available  information,  5,835  cases  in  2014  and  5,156 cases in 2015 were registered under environment related offences. Act wise and State/UT-wise data during 2014 & 2015 is enclosed as Annexure- A & B respectively.

(b): NCRB collects, compiles and publishes police recorded crime data as reported by States/UTs.

(c): The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MOEF&CC) accords prior environmental clearance for projects listed in the schedule of Environmental   Impact   Assessment  (EIA)  Notification, 2006 (and  its

.....3/

## L.S.S.Q.NO. *172  FOR 14.03.2017

amendments). Violations of the environmental norms issued for development projects are monitored by ten Regional Offices of the Ministry and by State/UT Pollution Control Board/Committee or any other concerned Central/State  agencies.  The  Ministry  sets  up  standard  for  emission  and effluent discharge. The Ministry prescribes effluent discharge norms/standards for different industries stricter. The Ministry has mandated installation of continuous monitoring system for highly polluting 17 category of industries.

d): MoEF&CC administers various Acts/Rules/Notifications for preservation, conservation, protection and improvement of environment.  The Ministry regularly updates these notifications to meet the best possible standards after consultations with experts and stakeholders.   National  Green  Tribunal  (NGT)  has  been  set  up  to  enforce legal  rights  relating  to  environment  and  give  relief  or  compensation  to affected persons.

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## Page 1/1 Annexure - A

## L.S.S.Q.NO.*172 FOR  14.03.2017

## State/UT wise cases registered under environment related offences during 2014

| S.No               | State/UT              | Forest Act, 1927   | Wildlife Protection Act, 1972   | Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986   | Air (Prevention& Control of Pollution) Act, 1981   | Water (Prevention& Control of Pollution) Act, 1974(as amended in 1988)   | Total Environment Related Offences   |
|--------------------|-----------------------|--------------------|---------------------------------|----------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------|
| (1)                | (2)                   | (3)                | (4)                             | (5)                                    | (6)                                                | (7)                                                                      | (8)                                  |
| STATES:            | STATES:               |                    |                                 |                                        |                                                    |                                                                          |                                      |
| 1                  | Andhra Pradesh        | 108                | 9                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 117                                  |
| 2                  | Arunachal Pradesh     | 3                  | 3                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 6                                    |
| 3                  | Assam                 | 10                 | 73                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 83                                   |
| 4                  | Bihar                 | 28                 | 2                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 30                                   |
| 5                  | Chhattisgarh          | 1                  | 11                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 12                                   |
| 6                  | Goa                   | 0                  | 2                               | 7                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 9                                    |
| 7                  | Gujarat               | 1                  | 36                              | 3                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 40                                   |
| 8                  | Haryana               | 6                  | 15                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 21                                   |
| 9                  | Himachal Pradesh      | 134                | 15                              | 1                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 150                                  |
| 10                 | Jammu& Kashmir        | 8                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 8                                    |
| 11                 | Jharkhand             | 144                | 0                               | 0                                      | 4                                                  | 0                                                                        | 148                                  |
| 12                 | Karnataka             | 165                | 84                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 249                                  |
| 13                 | Kerala                | 22                 | 5                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 1                                                                        | 28                                   |
| 14                 | Madhya Pradesh        | 10                 | 15                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 25                                   |
| 15                 | Maharashtra           | 25                 | 56                              | 41                                     | 13                                                 | 1                                                                        | 136                                  |
| 16                 | Manipur               | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 17                 | Meghalaya             | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 18                 | Mizoram               | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 19                 | Nagaland              | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 20                 | Odisha                | 0                  | 1                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 1                                    |
| 21                 | Punjab                | 1                  | 5                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 6                                    |
| 22                 | Rajasthan             | 2666               | 219                             | 35                                     | 7                                                  | 0                                                                        | 2927                                 |
| 23                 | Sikkim                | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 24                 | Tamil Nadu            | 31                 | 2                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 33                                   |
| 25                 | Telangana             | 4                  | 3                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 3                                                                        | 10                                   |
| 26                 | Tripura               | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 27                 | Uttar Pradesh         | 1442               | 149                             | 6                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 1597                                 |
| 28                 | Uttarakhand           | 34                 | 6                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 40                                   |
| 29                 | West Bengal           | 17                 | 45                              | 8                                      | 24                                                 | 10                                                                       | 104                                  |
|                    | TOTAL STATE(S)        | 4860               | 756                             | 101                                    | 48                                                 | 15                                                                       | 5780                                 |
| UNION TERRITORIES: | UNION TERRITORIES:    |                    |                                 |                                        |                                                    |                                                                          |                                      |
| 30                 | A&NIslands            | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 31                 | Chandigarh            | 0                  | 1                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 1                                    |
| 32                 | D&N Haveli            | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 33                 | Daman& Diu            | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 34                 | Delhi UT              | 41                 | 12                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 53                                   |
| 35                 | Lakshadweep           | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 0                                    |
| 36                 | Puducherry            | 0                  | 1                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                                        | 1                                    |
| TOTAL              | TOTAL UT(S) ALL INDIA | 41 4901            | 14 770                          | 0 101                                  | 0 48                                               | 0 15                                                                     | 55 5835                              |

Source:  Crime in India

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Page 1/1 Annexure - B

L.S.S.Q.NO.*172 FOR  14.03.2017

## State/UT-wise cases registered under environment related offences during 2015

3

4

6

9

4

0

1

0

0

5

0

0

1

2

0

0

1

0

| S. No.             | State/UT           | Forest Act, 1927   | Wildlife Protection Act, 1972   | Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986   | Air (Prevention &Control of Pollution) Act, 1981   | Water (Prevention& Control of Pollution) Act, 1974   | Total Environment Related Offences   |
|--------------------|--------------------|--------------------|---------------------------------|----------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------|
| (1)                | (2)                | (3)                | (4)                             | (5)                                    | (6)                                                | (7)                                                  | (8)                                  |
| STATES:            | STATES:            | STATES:            | STATES:                         | STATES:                                | STATES:                                            | STATES:                                              | STATES:                              |
| 1                  | Andhra Pradesh     | 177                | 2                               | 1                                      | 0                                                  | 1                                                    | 181                                  |
| 2                  | Arunachal Pradesh  | 0                  | 3                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 3                                    |
| 3                  | Assam              | 31                 | 74                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 105                                  |
| 4                  | Bihar              | 4                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 4                                    |
| 5                  | Chhattisgarh       | 0                  | 12                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 12                                   |
| 6                  | Goa                | 0                  | 0                               | 6                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 6                                    |
| 7                  | Gujarat            | 7                  | 20                              | 1                                      | 0                                                  | 3                                                    | 31                                   |
| 8                  | Haryana            | 9                  | 10                              | 1                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 20                                   |
| 9                  | Himachal Pradesh   | 101                | 12                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 113                                  |
| 10                 | Jammu& Kashmir     | 5                  | 4                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 9                                    |
| 11                 | Jharkhand          | 198                | 34                              | 0                                      | 1                                                  | 0                                                    | 233                                  |
| 12                 | Karnataka          | 135                | 74                              | 1                                      | 1                                                  | 0                                                    | 211                                  |
| 13                 | Kerala             | 12                 | 2                               | 1                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 15                                   |
| 14                 | Madhya Pradesh     | 16                 | 3                               | 1                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 20                                   |
| 15                 | Maharashtra        | 18                 | 20                              | 46                                     | 42                                                 | 1                                                    | 127                                  |
| 16                 | Manipur            | 4                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 4                                    |
| 17                 | Meghalaya          | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 0                                    |
| 18                 | Mizoram            | 0                  | 1                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 1                                    |
| 19                 | Nagaland           | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 0                                    |
| 20                 | Odisha             | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 0                                    |
| 21                 | Punjab             | 4                  | 1                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 5                                    |
| 22                 | Rajasthan          | 1828               | 239                             | 3                                      | 3                                                  | 1                                                    | 2074                                 |
| 23                 | Sikkim             | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 0                                    |
| 24                 | Tamil Nadu         | 14                 | 2                               | 1                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 20                                   |
| 25                 | Telangana          | 6                  | 9                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 1                                                    | 16                                   |
| 26                 | Tripura            | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 0                                    |
| 27                 | Uttar Pradesh      | 1311               | 234                             | 234                                    | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 1779                                 |
| 28                 | Uttarakhand        | 41                 | 14                              | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 55                                   |
| 29                 | West Bengal        | 6                  | 50                              | 1                                      | 3                                                  | 3                                                    | 63                                   |
|                    | TOTAL STATE(S)     | 3927               | 820                             | 297                                    | 50                                                 | 10                                                   | 5104                                 |
| UNION TERRITORIES: | UNION TERRITORIES: | UNION TERRITORIES: | UNION TERRITORIES:              | UNION TERRITORIES:                     | UNION TERRITORIES:                                 | UNION TERRITORIES:                                   | UNION TERRITORIES:                   |
| 30                 | A&NIslands         | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 1                                    |
| 31                 | Chandigarh         | 0                  | 0                               | 2                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 2                                    |
| 32                 | D&N Haveli         | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 0                                    |
| 33                 | Daman& Diu         | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 0                                    |
| 34                 | Delhi UT           | 41                 | 8                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 49                                   |
| 35                 | Lakshadweep        | 0                  | 1                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 1                                    |
| 36                 | Puducherry         | 0                  | 0                               | 0                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 0                                    |
|                    | TOTAL UT(S)        | 41                 | 9                               | 2                                      | 0                                                  | 0                                                    | 52                                   |
| TOTAL ALL          | INDIA              | 3968               | 829                             | 299                                    | 50                                                 | 10                                                   | 5156                                 |

Source:  Crime in India