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51A.(g) To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, takes, rivers and wild life, and to have compassion for living creatures."

Apart from the constitutional mandate to protect and improve the environment there are plenty of post independence legislations on the subject but more relevant enactments for our purpose are: The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution Act 1974 (the Water Act), The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 (the Air Act) and the Environment Protection Act 1986 (the Environment Act). The Water Act provides for the constitution of the Central Pollution Control Board by the Central Government and the constitution of one State Pollution Control boards by various State Governments in the country. The Boards function under the control of the Governments concerned. The Water Act prohibits the use or streams and wells for disposal of polluting matters. Also provides for restrictions on outlets and discharge of effluents without obtaining consent from the Board. Prosecution and penalties have been provided which include sentence of imprisonment. The Air Act provides that the Central Pollution Control Board and the State Pollution Control Boards constituted under the later Act shall also perform the powers and functions under the Air Act. The main function of the Boards, under the Air Act, is to improve the quality of the air and to prevent. control and abate air pollution in the country. We shall deal with the Environment Act in the later part of this judgement.

Sections 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8 of the Environment Act which are relevant are as under :

"3. Power of Central Government to take measures to protect and improve environment - (1) Subject to the provisions of this Act the Central, Government shall have till power to take all such measures as it deems necessary or expedient for the purpose of protecting improving the quality of the environment and preventing controlling and abating environmental pollution.
(ix) Proximity to human settlements
(x) Any other factors as may be considered by the Central Government to be relevant to the protection of the environment in an area".

It is thus obvious that the Environment Act contains useful provisions for controlling pollution. The main purpose of the Act is to create an authority or authorities under Section 3(3) of the Act with adequate powers to control pollution and protect the environment. It is a pity that till date no authority has been constituted by the Central Government. The work which is required to be done by an authority in terms of Section 3(3) read with other provision of the Act is being done by this Court and the other Courts in the country. It is high time that the Central Government realises its responsibility and statutory duty to protect the degrading environment in the country. If the conditions in the five districts of Tamil Nadu, where tanneries are operating, are permitted to continue then in the near future all rivers/canals shall be polluted, underground waters contaminated, agricultural lands turned barren and the residents of the area exposed to serious diseases. lt is, therefore, necessary for this Court to direct the Central Government to take immediate action under the provisions of the Environment Act.

1. The Central Government shall constitute an authority under Section 3(3) of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and shall confer on the said authority all the powers necessary to deal with the situation created by the tanneries and other polluting industries in the State of Tamil Nadu. The Authority shall be headed by a retired judge of the High Court and it may have other members- preferably with expertise in the field of pollution control and environment protection- to be appointed by the Central Government. The Central Government shall confer on the said authority the powers to issue directions under Section 5 of the Environment Act and for taking measures with respect to the matters referred to in Clause (v), (vi) (vii) (viii)