a short study of chemical legislation in India, It's just about the intro and some Acts of the legislature.

1. CHEMICAL
MANAGEMENT AND
ENVIRONMENTAL
LEGISLATION IN INDIA

2. INTRODUCTION
The management of chemicals relies upon a mix of national, regional and
international mechanisms, a range of multilateral environmental agreement, as well
as voluntary initiatives including Globally Harmonized System of classification and
labeling of chemicals (GHS), the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals
Management (SAICM) and Responsible Care. In many countries, legislative and
administrative measures have been introduced to deal with chemical hazards. Whilst
the origin of such measures can be traced back to the development by the courts of
common law principles such as the law of nuisance, and to certain ancient statutes,
the subject of chemical hazard is relatively of recent origin.

3. INTERNATIONAL PROSPECTIVE REGARD CHEMICAL MANAGEMENT
In 1992, the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (the Rio Earth
Conference) gave rise to the Agenda 21 Report. This report outlined the responsibilities of States
towards the achievement of sustainable development, and was adopted by heads of
Government in over 150 countries. Chapter 19 of Agenda 21 addresses the environmentally
sound management of toxic chemicals, including basic programs for :
1. Adequate legislation,
2. Information gathering and dissemination,
3. Capacity for risk assessment and interpretation
4. Establishment of risk management policy
5. Capacity for implementation and enforcement
6. Capacity for rehabilitation of contaminated sites and poisoned persons
7. Effective education programs
8. Capacity to respond to emergencies
The Stockholm Conference (1994) established the Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety
(IFCS) and the International Program for the Sound Management of Chemicals (IOMC) as a
means for discussing and exchanging information. Most nations take their obligations in
controlling chemicals very seriously.

4. The Indian chemical industry is poised for growth, and a clearly defined vision has
been developed to enable it. The vision for Indian chemical industry is “To facilitate
the growth and development of the chemical industry in an environmental friendly
manner; with focus on innovation to meet local needs, sustainability, and green
technologies and processes; so as to enable it to become a globally competitive
major-player. The growth of the chemical sector has played a very important role in
the economic growth of the country, but the risks associated with production and
consumption of chemical needs to be identified and addressed for management of
risk. Though the risk associated with production is mainly in the western region due
to large number of chemical industries present in clusters, however, the risk
associated with consumption is spread throughout the country.
Chemical management in India

5. Legislations on chemical management
There is a need for a well-defined legal framework for chemical management in
India. Legislation in India is fairly comprehensive capturing various stages of
chemicals lifecycles through different legal instruments. However, due to cross
sectorial nature of chemical management, several pieces of legislation, regulations
or standards in the country address chemicals in different ways. Additionally, there
are specific legal instruments dealing with a particular category of chemicals, such
as pesticides, petroleum, explosives etc.
1. The Air ( Prevention And Control of Pollution) Act, 1981
2. The Environment (Protection) Act,1986
3. National Disaster Management Act, 2005
4. The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991
5. The Explosives Act, 1884
6. The Prevention of Food And Adulteration Act, 1954

6. RAHUL YADAV
RESEARCH SCHOLAR, FACULTY OF LAW, MDU,
ROHTAK.
SANDEEP
LL.M. STUDENT, MDU, ROHTAK.
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