Sections 43 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 43 is the penalty for breaking the ban in section 24 on letting polluting matter into a stream, well, sewer or land. As substituted in 2024, section 44 deals with tampering with a meter, gauge or monitoring device used for consent, and section 45 on enhanced penalty after a previous conviction has been omitted. In a State that has not adopted the 2024 Act, the earlier wording of all three continues, and it carries imprisonment.
This article is current as amended up to the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Amendment Act, 2024 (in force from 15 February 2024 in Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and the Union territories, and in other States from the date they adopt it). Later amendments and notifications should be checked. If you face a penalty proceeding or prosecution under these sections, our legal dispute resolution team can help.
Where the 2024 Act applies: contravening section 24 attracts a penalty of not less than ten thousand rupees but up to fifteen lakh rupees, plus ten thousand rupees for every day it continues (section 43), and tampering with a consent monitoring device attracts the same range (section 44). Section 45 is omitted. In a State that has not adopted it, contravening section 24, 25 or 26 is punishable with imprisonment of not less than one year and six months, up to six years, and fine, and a repeat offence with two to seven years and fine.
Which wording applies
The 2024 Act applies in the first instance to Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and the Union territories, and to any other State that adopts it by resolution under article 252(1). See section 1. This series does not list States; check whether your State has adopted it.
Section 43 (2024 text): contravention of section 24
"Whoever contravenes the provisions of section 24, shall be liable to pay the penalty which shall not be less than ten thousand rupees, but which may extend to fifteen lakh rupees and where such contravention continues, he shall be liable to pay an additional penalty of ten thousand rupees every day during which such contravention continues."
Section 24 bars knowingly causing or permitting poisonous, noxious or polluting matter to enter a stream, well, sewer or land, and the impeding of flow. See section 24.
In a State that has not adopted the 2024 Act, the earlier wording continues: whoever contravened the provisions of section 24 was punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one year and six months but which may extend to six years and with fine.
Section 44 (2024 text): interference with a monitoring device
"Where for the purpose of grant of a consent in pursuance of the provisions of section 25 or section 26, the use of a meter or gauge or other measure or monitoring device is required and such device is used for the purposes of those provisions, any person who knowingly or wilfully alters or interferes with that device so as to prevent it from monitoring or measuring correctly shall be liable to pay penalty which shall not be less than ten thousand rupees, but which may extend to fifteen lakh rupees."
This section took over the substance of the earlier section 42(2), the meter-tampering provision. Note the elements: a device required for a consent under section 25 or 26, actually in use, and a person who knowingly or wilfully alters or interferes with it so that it cannot measure correctly. The text of section 44 prints no daily additional penalty.
In a State that has not adopted the 2024 Act, the earlier wording continues. The earlier section 44 was the penalty for contravening section 25 or section 26: whoever contravened them was punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one year and six months but which may extend to six years and with fine. The meter-tampering provision was then in section 42(2), with imprisonment up to three months or fine up to ten thousand rupees or both.
Where operating without consent now sits
Under the 2024 text, the failure to comply with section 25 or section 26, that is, operating or establishing without consent, is an offence under section 45E(1), with imprisonment and fine as printed there. See sections 45E to 48. A reader looking for the penalty for operating without consent therefore finds it in section 45E, and in section 44 only for tampering with the device.
Section 45: omitted
Section 45, "Enhanced penalty after previous conviction", was omitted by the 2024 Amendment Act with effect from 15 February 2024.
In a State that has not adopted the 2024 Act, the earlier wording continues: a person who had been convicted of an offence under section 24, 25 or 26 and was again found guilty of an offence involving a contravention of the same provision was punishable, on the second and every subsequent conviction, with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than two years but which may extend to seven years and with fine. The proviso said that no cognizance would be taken of a conviction made more than two years before the commission of the offence being punished.
Side by side
| Section | Where the 2024 Act applies | Where it has not been adopted |
|---|---|---|
| 43 (breach of section 24) | Penalty: ten thousand to fifteen lakh rupees; ten thousand rupees a day while it continues | Imprisonment one year six months to six years, and fine |
| 44 | Penalty: ten thousand to fifteen lakh rupees for interfering with a consent monitoring device | Imprisonment one year six months to six years, and fine, for breach of section 25 or 26 |
| 45 | Omitted | Second and later conviction: two to seven years and fine; two-year look-back proviso |
Who decides, and what follows
Where the 2024 Act applies, a penalty is imposed by an adjudicating officer after an inquiry, with an appeal to the National Green Tribunal and a deposit of ten per cent of the penalty. See sections 45A to 45D. Section 45B(3) says the penalty under sections 41, 41A, 42, 43, 44, 45A and 48 is in addition to the liability to pay relief or compensation under the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010. Non-payment within ninety days is an offence under section 45E(3).
Where the earlier wording continues, the offence is tried on a complaint under section 49 before a court not inferior to a Metropolitan Magistrate or a Judicial Magistrate of the first class. See sections 49 and 50.
Practical points
- Identify the regime. The same discharge can mean a civil penalty in one State and a prosecution in another.
- Do not tamper with devices. A meter, gauge or monitoring device required for consent must be left to measure correctly.
- Treat section 24 as continuing. The daily additional penalty runs while the contravention continues.
- Check consent status. Operating without consent is an offence under section 45E where the 2024 Act applies.
- Keep records of corrective action with dates; they are relevant to the factors the adjudicating officer weighs.
An example
Kosi Chemicals Private Limited, in a State where the 2024 Act applies, lets untreated wash water enter a stream for nine days. The adjudicating officer finds a contravention of section 24 and imposes a penalty under section 43 within the printed range, with the daily additional penalty for the days it continued. Separately, a technician at the same plant resets the flow meter required by the plant's consent so that it under-reads. That is a matter for section 44. In a neighbouring State that has not adopted the 2024 Act, the same discharge would be an offence punishable on conviction under the earlier section 43.
Need help with a penalty or prosecution?
Which wording applies, and whether the issue is a civil penalty or an offence, shapes your whole response. Our legal dispute resolution team can help you read the notice, check the regime, and prepare your defence.
Key takeaways
- Where the 2024 Act applies, section 43 imposes a civil penalty for breach of section 24, and section 44 for tampering with a consent monitoring device.
- Section 45 is omitted where the 2024 Act applies.
- In a State that has not adopted it, breaches of section 24, 25 or 26 carry imprisonment and fine, and repeat offences carry more.
- Operating without consent under the 2024 text is dealt with in section 45E.
- Penalties are in addition to relief or compensation under the NGT Act.
Read next
- Section 24: the ban on polluting a stream or well
- Section 25: consent to establish and operate
- Sections 45A to 45D: adjudicating officer, appeal and the Fund
- Sections 45E to 48: offences and Government Departments
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.