The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) on January 23, 2026, issued the Draft Amendments to the Ash Utilization Notification, 2021.
The following has been stated namely: -
• The Draft Amendments propose significant changes to rationalise compliance and strengthen monitoring of ash utilisation. The amendments shift key monitoring and compliance functions from the Central Pollution Control Board to the Central Electricity Authority, which will oversee reporting, data management, and review through a centralised digital portal.
• The compliance framework is streamlined by linking utilisation targets to actual ash generation and allowing limited carry-forward of unutilised ash across compliance cycles, while clarifying multi-year compliance timelines for thermal power plants.
• The draft also rationalises the environmental compensation mechanism by reducing the penalty for unutilised ash and clearly defining the circumstances under which compensation will be levied, along with a structured sharing of collected amounts between State Pollution Control Boards and CPCB.
• Further, the amendments strengthen utilisation pathways by mandating the use of ash in mines within a specified radius under an extended producer responsibility framework, while removing impractical earlier requirements.
Any objection or suggestion with respect to the said draft amendments may be sent to the Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Indira Paryavaran Bhawan, Jor Bagh Road, New Delhi 110003, or electronically at the email address: [email protected], by March 25, 2026.
[Notification no. - NCCL/INSPECTION 002/2026]
