India's Central Pollution Control Board

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) celebrated its 51^st Foundation Day at Parivesh Bhawan, New Delhi, on September 22, 2025. The event was graced by India’s Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Mr Bhupender Yadav, as the Chief Guest.

On the occasion, the Minister extended greetings and congratulations to the CPCB employees on the momentous occasion of the 51^st foundation day. Mr Yadav appreciated that CPCB has established its credibility in the country in the past five decades, with its reports trusted by the Courts and the citizens of this country.

Established in 1974, New Delhi-based CPCB is a statutory organisation under the MoEFCC. The board coordinates the activities of State Pollution Control Boards, offering guidance and resolving disputes, and serves as the apex technical organisation in pollution control in India.

Addressing the Foundation Day gathering, the Minister stated that as the country moves towards the goal of becoming a five trillion-dollar economy, with historic GST reforms to be implemented from today, there is a need to evolve environmental regulations and norms so that the economy and ecology go hand-in-hand.

Collaboration with IITs, reputed academic institutes and leading research bodies is required for the development of new technologies and expanding environmental laboratories in the country. “We need to come out with new low-polluting alternatives and cleaner technologies for strengthening Make-In-India, along with ensuring wider availability of these technologies”, he added.

Underlining the importance of capacity building, Mr Yadav stated that CPCB has a significant role to play in capacity building of State Boards and agencies. CPCB should be the umbrella organisation for capacity building in environmental matters of the country, and should become a mentor.

Reflecting on the recent reforms brought out by the Government of India in the form of the Jan Vishwas Act, 2023 (decriminalizing provisions) and Environment Audit Rules, 2025, the Minister expressed that Rules and regulations made by the Government would not be effective unless there’s a behavioural change, and thus, Environmental protection should be a part of our collective environmental consciousness.

He emphasised that regulatory mechanisms need to be seen along with societal growth, and it is essential to link social science with science and technology to instil behavioural change.

During the event, Mr Yadav laid the foundation stone of the Central Pollution Control Board’s new building. Additionally, two new laboratories at CPCB’s Regional Directorates in Pune and Shillong were inaugurated.

These facilities are equipped to monitor up to 70 and 62 environmental parameters, respectively. The Pune facility would serve Maharashtra, and the Shillong facility would serve the North-Eastern States of Manipur, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Tripura and Sikkim.

The updated SAMEER App (Version 2.0) was also launched, featuring a user-friendly interface, personalised alerts, location-based services, and improved citizen engagement. The app will be available on Android and iOS platforms. The Minister also distributed offer letters to 13 recruits to various posts during the occasion as part of CPCB’s efforts to strengthen its workforce.

In addition, a technical report titled ‘Classification of Polluted River Stretches, 2025’ was released, based on national water quality monitoring data. Further, a manual titled ‘Identification of Non-Polluted and Polluted Stretches and Water Bodies through Freshwater Benthic Macroinvertebrates in India’ was also released by the Minister.

The Foundation Day event saw the participation of a diverse group of stakeholders, including senior government officials, Board Members of CPCB, officials of SPCBs and PCCs, State governments, as well as representatives from international organisations, regulatory organisations, industry associations, experts, academicians, former members of the Central Pollution Control Board, media, civil society and CPCB officials.