Why the SC’s redefinition of the Aravalli Range is a threat to life in north India

There is massive outrage against the recent Supreme Court’s decision to redefine what makes up the Aravalli mountain range located in the northwestern part of India.

A group of lawyers led by the Udaipur Bar Association recently submitted a memorandum to the President strongly objecting to the decision to exclude hills that stand less than 100 meters in height from the mountain range. They argued that most of the hills in the Udaipur and Mewar regions fall under this category.

Excluding the smaller hills from the protected mountain range would mean it would be left open for construction, exploitation and illegal mining activities. About 90 per cent of the hills outside of the conservation zone would be subject to environmental damage under the implementation of the new definition.

SP President Akhilesh Yadav, in a lengthy post on X, urged Delhiites to protect the Aravalli hills from destruction. In a lengthy post, he said, “Do not forget that only if the Aravalli is saved will the NCR be saved.”

“The Aravalli mountain range alone reduces Delhi's air pollution and plays a vital role in rainfall and water. The biodiversity of the NCR survives only because of the Aravalli. The wetlands that are disappearing one by one can be saved by it alone. It can bring back the birds that are vanishing. The temperature of the NCR is regulated by the Aravalli alone.”

He warned that the Delhi residents who are struggling to breathe will never escape the condition of smog if the Aravalli is not saved.

Why the Aravalli hills are important

The Aravalii hills stretches from Gujarat and extends to Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi. The hills act as a protective shield and is a location of biodiversity, making it home to millions of flora and fauna.

The mountain range plays a massive role in preventing the spread of desertification, which spreads from the Thar.

It also determines the monsoon patterns and recharges groundwater, contributing about 2 million litres per hectare. Without the hill, most of the rain from the Arabian Sea would be redirected to Pakistan instead of Rajasthan.

The hills also prevent dust and pollution from moving toward the north.

Exploring the hills would be a threat to water, greenery and life in the north.

Parts of the Aravalli hills have already disappeared due to continuous illegal mining, NDTV reported.

The Alwar NCR region is already affected by mining activities by “mining mafias.”

Environmentalists say that 35 per cent of the Aravalli range has already been damaged in the last two decades.

According to the Forest Survey of India's internal assessment report, approximately 1,16,753 hills in Rajasthan alone are less than 100 meters.

Environmentalist L.K. Sharma said that the Environment Ministry should reconsider the new definition.

Social activist and founding member of People for Aravalli, Neelam Ahluwalia, has warned that a public campaign will be launched against the implementatioj of the definition.