ABSTRACT
This is an introductory chapter which while highlighting the importance of industrial development, discusses its negative consequences in terms of water pollution. The dismal performance of the country on global and national environment performance indexes is referred to. The chapter argues for the sustenance of such development efforts which are at the cost of environmental degradation. The discussion includes sustainable development and sustainable development goals (SDGs) to which India is committed. This chapter sets the tone for subsequent chapters where economic growth, industrial development, pollution of receiving water bodies, the performance of environmental infrastructure, environmental governance and the country’s performance on global and national SDG indexes have been dealt with in detail with empirical evidence.
