When was the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act enacted, in which of the following years?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — A, 1974. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act was enacted by Parliament in 1974. It was India's first comprehensive law to prevent and control water pollution and to maintain or restore the wholesomeness of water. It created the institutional machinery for pollution control — the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) at the Centre and the State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs). Because 'water' is a State-List subject, it was passed under Article 252, with enabling resolutions from state legislatures.

Why the other options are wrong — (b) 1976 is the year of the 42nd Constitutional Amendment, which inserted the environmental duties in Articles 48A and 51A(g) — a related milestone, but the Water Act itself was enacted in 1974, not 1976.  (c) No major central environmental statute was enacted in 1975; the Water Act was already in force by then. It is a filler year placed close to the correct 1974.  (d) 1977 is the year of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act — a companion law that levied a cess on water use to fund the pollution-control boards — not the parent Water Act, which is 1974.

Concept: The Water Act, 1974 is the foundation of India's pollution-control regime. The chronology of core environmental laws is: Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974 → Water Cess Act 1977 → Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981 → Environment (Protection) Act 1986 (the umbrella law passed after the 1984 Bhopal gas disaster). The Water and Air Acts set up the CPCB and SPCBs that administer the later rules.

State PCS 2023 Q28 — Environment & Ecology PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2023 Q28 — Environment & Ecology PYQ with Answer