Withdrawal of consent 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.
Section 26 brought discharges that already existed when the Act began into the consent system. Section 27 limits when a Board may grant consent, and lets it review, vary or revoke the conditions of a consent, or review a refusal or an unconditional grant, from time to time.
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; section 27A, inserted by it right after them, is dealt with separately). Later amendments and notifications should be checked. If you have received a notice varying or revoking your consent, our reply to legal notice team can help you answer it.
Section 26: a person who was already discharging sewage or trade effluent when the Act began had to apply for consent under section 25 by the date the State Government specified by notification. Section 27(1): the Board must not grant consent for a new industry or outlet unless it is built to comply with the conditions the Board imposes to let it take samples. Section 27(2): the Board may from time to time review conditions, and may vary or revoke them by notice, or review a refusal or an unconditional grant and make such orders as it deems fit. Orders can be appealed under section 28.
Section 26: existing discharges
"Where immediately before the commencement of this Act any person was discharging any sewage or trade effluent into a stream or well or sewer or on land, the provisions of section 25 shall, so far as may be, apply in relation to such person as they apply in relation to the person referred to in that section", with one change: the application for consent under section 25(2) "shall be made on or before such date as may be specified by the State Government by notification in this behalf in the Official Gazette".
In effect, a discharger already in operation did not need prior consent to continue until the notified date, but had to apply by that date. The reference to commencement is to commencement in the relevant State or Union territory; see section 1. The section matters today mainly because later references to "section 25 or section 26" consents cover both new and existing dischargers, for example in conditions, appeals, review and penalties.
Section 27(1): the sampling condition for new consents
"A State Board shall not grant its consent under sub-section (4) of section 25 for the establishment of any industry, operation or process, or treatment and disposal system or extension or addition thereto, or to the bringing into use of a new or altered outlet unless the industry, operation or process, or treatment and disposal system or extension or addition thereto, or the outlet is so established as to comply with any conditions imposed by the Board to enable it to exercise its right to take samples of the effluent."
Read plainly, the Board may impose conditions that make sampling possible, such as access points or sampling arrangements, and may not grant consent unless the plant is built to meet them. The right to take samples is in section 21. A design that does not provide for sampling is therefore a ground on which a Board can lawfully decline to grant consent under this sub-section.
Section 27(2): review, variation and revocation
"A State Board may from time to time review—"
| Clause | What may be reviewed | Power |
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Any condition imposed under section 25 or section 26 | Serve on the person to whom consent was granted a notice "making any reasonable variation of or revoking any such condition" |
| (b) | The refusal of any consent under section 25(1) or section 26, or the grant of such consent without any condition | "Make such orders as it deemed fit" |
Four points from the wording:
- "From time to time". The power is continuing. A condition in your consent is not fixed for its whole validity.
- "Reasonable variation". A variation in clause (a) must be reasonable. An appeal lies if it is not; see below.
- Revocation is of a condition. Clause (a) speaks of revoking "any such condition". The Board can also act on a consent as a whole in other ways, including cancellation under the guidelines that section 27A allows.
- Review reaches unconditional grants. Clause (b) lets the Board look again at a refusal, and at a grant without conditions, which includes a deemed consent under section 25(7). It may then "make such orders as it deemed fit", which can include imposing conditions.
Section 27(3): conditions continue until revoked
"Any condition imposed under section 25 or section 26 shall be subject to any variation made under sub-section (2) and shall continue in force until revoked under that sub-section." So a condition stays in force even after the original period in the consent unless it is revoked as clause (a) provides, and a variation prevails over the original wording.
Remedies
An order under section 25, 26 or 27 can be appealed within thirty days of communication to the appellate authority the State Government has constituted, and can be taken up in revision by the State Government. See sections 28 and 29. A further appeal lies to the National Green Tribunal; see sections 33 to 33B.
Link with the 2024 guidelines
Section 27A, inserted by the 2024 Amendment Act, says every State Board shall act in accordance with Central Government guidelines in granting, refusing or cancelling consent under section 25 or section 27. It applies where the 2024 Act applies. See section 27A. For the voluntary side of ending consent, see our guide on how to cancel or surrender CTE and CTO.
Practical points
- Read every notice as a possible section 27(2) variation. Check whether it varies a condition, revokes one or reviews a refusal.
- Check "reasonable". A variation must be reasonable; the appellate authority can annul an unreasonable condition or variation, or substitute a reasonable one.
- Keep sampling access in your design. Section 27(1) ties consent to the sampling conditions.
- Track the thirty days. The appeal period under section 28 runs from communication of the order.
- Keep the consent and all variations together. Section 27(3) makes a variation part of your conditions.
An example
Pench Paper Products Limited holds consent with a condition on the volume of effluent discharged. The Board reviews the condition after a dry season and serves a notice reducing the permitted volume. The company's advisers consider the notice under section 27(2)(a), find that the variation reduces the volume without giving reasons, and appeal to the appellate authority within thirty days of the date the order was communicated, arguing that the variation is not reasonable.
Need help with a consent variation or withdrawal?
A notice varying or revoking a consent condition has a short appeal clock. Our reply to legal notice team can help you read the notice, prepare a reply and appeal on time.
Key takeaways
- Section 26 applied the consent system to discharges already in existence, with an application date fixed by State notification.
- Under section 27(1), a Board will not grant consent for a new industry or outlet unless it is built to meet the Board's sampling conditions.
- Section 27(2) lets the Board review conditions from time to time, serve notice varying reasonably or revoking them, and review refusals and unconditional grants.
- Conditions continue in force until revoked, subject to variation.
- Orders under these sections can be appealed within thirty days, with revision by the State Government.
Read next
- Section 25: consent to establish and operate
- Section 27A: Central guidelines on consent
- Sections 28 and 29: appeal and revision
- How to cancel or surrender CTE/CTO
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.