WEAKENING DETERRENCE OR ENHANCING EFFICIENCY? THE QUASI-DECRIMINALISATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL OFFENCES IN INDIA
AUTHOR – SRISHTI YADAV, STUDENT AT ASIAN LAW COLLEGE
BEST CITATION – SRISHTI YADAV, WEAKENING DETERRENCE OR ENHANCING EFFICIENCY? THE QUASI-DECRIMINALISATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL OFFENCES IN INDIA, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 6 (9) OF 2026, PG. 426-431, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.
ABSTRACT
This research article examines the critical paradigm shift in India’s environmental regulatory framework from a strict, court- centred “command and control” model to a trust- based compliance system introduced through the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act 2023. Historically, India’s environmental governance relied heavily on criminal prosecution to deter polluters, treating every minor procedural violation as jail-eligible offences. This act aims to ease the regulation by decriminalising minor, technical and procedural defaults. While this “quasi-decriminalisation” successfully reduces business compliance burden by replacing the imprisonment for minor procedural defaults with civil penalties, it introduces major constitutional and enforcement challenges.
Vesting the quasi- judicial powers in the executive- appointed Adjudicating Officers raises significant separation of powers concerns, creates conflicts of interest when the prosecuting government based or owned polluters and highlight a critical technical competence deficit. Additionally, flat civil penalties risk being dismissed as a mere “cost of doing business” potentially diluting deterrence. To preserve environmental integrity while achieving regulatory efficiency, the study advocates targeted reinvestment of the Environmental Protection Fund to strengthen institutional capacity, enhance technical expertise, and develop a transparent public digital compliance portal. It concludes that the success of India’s quasi-decriminalisation framework will ultimately depend upon its ability to balance economic facilitation with constitutional accountability, effective enforcement, and the overarching objective of environmental justice.
Keywords: Jan Vishwas Act, Decriminalisation, Civil penalties, Environment protection