The central government has amended the Uniform Consent Guidelines under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 and the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 in a move aimed at streamlining environmental approvals, reducing procedural delays and strengthening compliance mechanisms across industries.
The guidelines, first issued last year, provide a uniform national framework for granting, refusing or cancelling Consent to Establish (CTE) and Consent to Operate (CTO). Officials said the amendments would bring greater consistency, transparency and accountability to consent management by State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) and Pollution Control Committees (PCCs).
One of the major reforms introduced is the provision for Consolidated Consent and Authorisation, enabling industries to apply through a single window for approvals under the Air and Water Acts along with authorisations required under various Waste Management Rules. This integrated approach is expected to cut down multiple applications, shorten approval timelines and reduce administrative burden, while retaining stringent monitoring and compliance provisions.
In a significant change for industry, the validity of the Consent to Operate will now continue until it is cancelled, eliminating the need for periodic renewals. Officials said continued environmental compliance will be ensured through inspections and the consent may be cancelled in case of violations. The processing time for Red Category industries has also been reduced from 120 days to 90 days.
The guidelines further allow Registered Environmental Auditors, certified under the Environment Audit Rules, 2025, to conduct site visits and verify compliance alongside SPCB officers. The government said this would help Boards prioritise inspections for high-risk industries and strengthen enforcement capacity.
For Micro and Small Enterprises located within notified industrial estates or areas, the amendments introduce a deemed Consent to Establish, granted automatically upon submission of a self-certified application, as environmental suitability of the land has already been assessed.
Another major structural change replaces rigid minimum-distance siting norms with site-specific environmental assessments. Authorities will now be empowered to impose safeguards on a case-by-case basis depending on proximity to settlements, water bodies, monuments and ecologically sensitive zones.
States and Union Territories have also been allowed to prescribe one-time Consent to Operate fees for periods between 5 to 25 years, reducing repetitive fee collection and administrative processing. In addition, a uniform definition of ‘capital investment’ has been introduced to remove ambiguity in fee calculations across States.
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change emphasised that safeguards for refusal or cancellation of consent remain intact in cases of non-compliance with standards, violations of consent conditions, environmental damage or operations in prohibited areas. The revised framework, they said, balances ease of doing business with environmental protection through continuous monitoring, trust-based governance and a uniform national mechanism.
