UPSC Prelims 2022 Q75: CWC, CGWB, CGWA, NWDA and the EPA 1986

Which one of the following has been constituted under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986?

  1. Central Water Commission
  2. Central Ground Water Board
  3. Central Ground Water Authority
  4. National Water Development Agency

Answer: (c) Central Ground Water Authority

Statement-wise explanation

  • a: incorrect — The Central Water Commission was set up by a Department of Labour resolution dated 5 April 1945, as the Central Waterways, Irrigation and Navigation Commission. That is four decades before the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. It was formed by an executive resolution, not under any statute. It is a technical body for surface water planning and coordination.
  • b: incorrect — The Central Ground Water Board was created in 1970 by renaming the Exploratory Tube wells Organization under the Ministry of Agriculture. In 1972 it merged with the Ground Water Wing of the Geological Survey of India. It is a scientific body and a subordinate office of the water resources ministry, not a body constituted under the 1986 Act.
  • c: correct — The Central Ground Water Authority was constituted under Section 3(3) of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, by notification S.O. 38(E) of 14 January 1997. This followed the Supreme Court's order of 10 December 1996 in the M.C. Mehta case. The notification lets it issue directions under Section 5 and use the penal provisions of Sections 15 to 21 to regulate groundwater extraction across India.
  • d: incorrect — The National Water Development Agency was set up in 1982 as a society registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. Its job is to study interlinking of rivers under the National Perspective Plan. It predates the 1986 Act and was not created under it.

How to eliminate

A date check removes three options. The Environment (Protection) Act dates from 1986, so a body set up under it must come after 1986. The Central Water Commission (1945), the Central Ground Water Board (1970/1972) and the National Water Development Agency (1982) all came earlier. A second cue is the name. Bodies created under Section 3(3) of the Act are usually called 'Authority' because they get regulatory powers. 'Commission', 'Board' and 'Agency' here are technical or study bodies. The trap is the Board versus the Authority: both deal with groundwater and share staff. Fact to remember: the Central Ground Water Authority was constituted in 1997 under Section 3(3) of the EPA 1986, on a Supreme Court direction.

Know more

Section 3(3) of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 lets the Central Government constitute an authority to exercise its powers under the Act. That authority can then issue binding directions (Section 5) and use the Act's penalties (Sections 15–21). This is how the Centre creates regulators without passing a new law.

Board vs Authority: two hats on one organisation

Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA)
Origin 1970 (renamed Exploratory Tube wells Organization); 1972 merger with GSI's Ground Water Wing 14 Jan 1997, S.O. 38(E)
Legal basis Executive order; subordinate office Section 3(3), EPA 1986
Trigger — Supreme Court, M.C. Mehta case (order of 10 Dec 1996)
Role Science: monitoring, aquifer mapping (NAQUIM), resource assessment Regulation: NOCs for extraction, directions, penalties

The 1997 notification named the CGWB itself as the Authority. So the same experts act as scientists in one role and as regulators in the other.

Other water bodies, for contrast

Body Year Basis
Central Water Commission 1945 Labour Department resolution
National Water Development Agency 1982 Societies Registration Act, 1860

How CGWA regulates today: pan-India guidelines notified on 24 September 2020 (S.O. 3289(E)), issued after directions from the National Green Tribunal. CGWA grants No Objection Certificates for groundwater withdrawal in 20 States/UTs. Other States have their own groundwater Acts and authorities.

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