PPCB enforces lead limit in paint for safer homes

The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) has directed all paint manufacturers in Punjab to ensure household and decorative paints comply with the lead limit of 90 parts per million (ppm) and obtain certification from recognized laboratories.

The direction strengthens enforcement of the Regulation of Lead Contents in Household and Decorative Paints Rules, 2016, which prohibits manufacture, sale, import, and export of paints with lead above 90 ppm.

PPCB field offices must now include lead-content compliance as a mandatory condition for granting or renewing consent to operate for paint manufacturing units.

Manufacturers must provide copies of certification to dealers and retailers for verification by regulatory authorities.

PPCB chairperson Reena Gupta stated the initiative aims to protect public health, especially children, who are more vulnerable to lead's harmful effects on neurological development.