The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) on July 27, 2026, issued advisory on grant of consent to new mercury-based manufacturing units.
This communication follows the second meeting of the National Project Steering Committee (NPSC) held on April 06, 2026 under the GEF-funded project "Phasing out Mercury Measuring Devices in Healthcare," co-chaired by Joint Secretaries from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoH&FW). The meeting discussed the need to strengthen mercury management across the country, with the minutes of the meeting enclosed for reference.
One key action point from the meeting was to issue advisories to State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) and Pollution Control Committees (PCCs) on mercury management practices, including collection and interim storage of mercury waste. Accordingly, this advisory directs SPCBs/PCCs to ensure implementation of the CPCB's existing "Guidelines for Environmentally Sound Management of Mercury Waste Generated from Health Care Facilities" (available on the CPCB website).
Additionally, SPCBs/PCCs are being advised not to grant consent to any new mercury-based manufacturing units, effectively discouraging the setup of new industries that use mercury, as part of the broader effort to phase out mercury use and improve its safe handling and disposal in the healthcare sector.
[Notification No. CP-27/13/2021-WM-I-HO-CPCB-HO-Part(1)-9488/4822]
