Guwahati, Aug. 5 -- The Supreme Court on Monday upheld the authority of Pollution Control Boards to impose and collect restitutionary and compensatory damages for actual or potential environmental harm under the Water and Air Acts.

A bench comprising Justices P S Narasimha and Manoj Misra ruled that environmental regulators have the constitutional and statutory power to take ex-ante measures, including levying fixed sums of money or requiring bank guarantees, to prevent or remedy pollution. The court clarified that such measures are civil in nature and distinct from punitive actions like fines or imprisonment.

The judgment came in response to an appeal filed by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, challenging a 2012 Delhi High Court v...