Persons handling hazardous substances to comply with procedural safeguards
No person shall handle or cause to be handled any hazardous substance except in accordance with such procedure and after complying with such safeguards as may be prescribed.
In plain English
What this section actually means
If Section 7 caps the discharge, Section 8 caps the conduct. Anyone who 'handles' (a very wide term — see Section 2(d)) any 'hazardous substance' (Section 2(e)) must follow the prescribed procedure and safeguards. The procedural framework sits in Rule 13 of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986 and in three principal subsidiary rules:
• Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016 — for hazardous wastes; • Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemicals Rules, 1989 — for hazardous chemicals; • Manufacture, Use, Import, Export and Storage of Hazardous Micro-organisms / Genetically Engineered Organisms or Cells Rules, 1989 — for GMOs.
Because 'handling' covers every commercial step from manufacture to sale (Section 2(d)), this section in practice means: no licence, no permit, no SOP, no Material Safety Data Sheet ⇒ no business with the substance. Non-compliance is, like Section 7, prosecutable under Section 15.
Visual
See how it flows
Old vs new
Three sets of rules — which one applies?
Pick the correct rule before drafting a compliance manual; the procedural safeguards differ.
- Solid / liquid hazardous waste from industryHazardous and Other Wastes (Management) Rules, 2016
- Hazardous chemicals (manufacture / storage / import)MSIHC Rules, 1989
- GMOs and engineered organismsRules for GMOs, 1989
Real life
What this looks like in real life
Chemical importer skips MSDS and packaging norms
Setup. An importer brings in 4 tonnes of an organic peroxide without sending the MSDS to the receiving warehouse and without complying with UN packaging norms required under the MSIHC Rules.
What the law does. Direct Section 8 violation. Even if no spill occurs, the absence of prescribed procedure is the offence. Customs can stop release; MoEFCC can issue Section 5 closure direction; Section 15 prosecution can run in parallel.
Cross-references
Read this alongside
- Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991§Section 4·Mandates no-fault compensation insurance for handling of 'hazardous substances' — uses the same definition as Section 2(e) EPA.
- Bhopal Gas Leak (Processing of Claims) Act, 1985§—·EPA's Section 8 was Parliament's structural response to the Bhopal tragedy of 1984.
Frequently asked
Questions about Section 8
Open this section in the source PDF
Environment Protection Act, 1986.pdf
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