The Madhya Pradesh High Court at Indore has directed the Chief Secretary of the State to ensure prompt action is taken against all the industries running in violation of the statutory provisions of the M.P. Water Pollution Act, 1974, and the Air Pollution Act, 1981, while dealing with a suo moto public interest litigation filed on the basis of news published in a local newspaper in Indore, stating that 5961 industries are being run without valid permission from the M.P. Pollution Control Board. Thereafter, notices were issued to the Chief Secretary of State of M.P., Principal Secretary, Housing and Environment, Principal Secretary, Industries Department, and also the M.P. Pollution Control Board through its Secretary.
In response, only the M.P. Pollution Control Board filed a reply, placing on record data showing that the majority of units having expired consents were healthcare units (including hospitals/clinics) and mines and crushers, which are mostly in the red or orange category. It was further stated that some of the mines/crusher units were closed due to expiry of mining lease or lack of environmental clearance, and therefore the data of the XGN portal is required to be updated.
The board informed the court that action had been taken against 4877 units, including the issuance of 4256 notices for renewal of consent, 2556 closure notices under the Water Act, 1974, and the Air Pollution Act, 1981, 390 closure orders against the repeated defaulter under section 33A of the Water Act and section 31A of the Air Pollution Act, and the filing of 45 court cases for non-compliance. It was further stated that many units were found to be closed, though as per the XGN portal, 4877 units were still shown as operating without valid renewal as of January 9, 2026, with verification to be completed within eight weeks.
On behalf of the state, it was submitted that the report of the M.P. Pollution Control Board has not been supplied so far, and therefore submission could not be made at this stage.
The Division Bench of Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Alok Awasthi observed that the issue involves the serious violation of statutory provisions of the M.P. Water Pollution Act and Air Pollution Act and expected the Chief Secretary of the State of Madhya Pradesh to ensure prompt action by coordinating with all the concerned departments on the Pollution Control Board.
Accordingly, the court directed that a senior government officer be appointed as OIC of the case and listed the matter on February 9, 2026, cautioning that failure to file a response may result in directions for the personal appearance of the concerned senior officer of the government.
Appearance:
Senior Advocate Amit Agarwal with Advocate Arjun Agarwal (Amicus Curiae)
Deputy Advocate General Sudeep Bhargava for respondent/state
Advocate Parul Bhadoria and Advocate Rishabh Singh Chauhan for respondent no. 4/M.P. Pollution Control Board
