On 20 November, the Supreme Court accepted a new definition of the Aravalli range, limiting it to landforms above an elevation of 100 metres. The ruling effectively removes nearly 90 per cent of the range from protection against development and mining activities. The decision has triggered protests across North India, with environmental groups arguing that the definition narrows environmental protection by relying on an administrative threshold that ignores ecological reality. Stretching across Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Gujarat, the Aravallis are among the oldest mountain systems in the world. The range plays a crucial role in maintaining regional climate stability, supporting groundwater recharge, and preventing the eastward spread of the Thar Desert. At the same time, the Aravallis are rich in minerals such as lead, copper, zinc, sandstone, limestone, marble, and granite. Decades of legal and illegal mining driven by this mineral wealth have already caused significant ecological degradation, intensifying concerns over the impact of the new ruling. Activists argue that the revised definition places the most vulnerable parts of the range at risk. While the lower hills of the Aravallis may not meet the height threshold set by the Court, they remain ecologically vital, functioning as natural buffers against desertification and as wildlife corridors. “The Aravalli range should not be defined by height alone, but by its ecological, geological and climatic role,” environmental activist Vikrant Tongad told the BBC. According to environmental groups, excluding these areas from protection could open the door to intensified mining and commercial activity, resulting in irreversible ecological damage. Concerns also extend to the impact on local communities. The Aravallis are home to several Adivasi groups, including the Bhils and Meenas, who depend on the region for subsistence agriculture, cultural practices, and religious life. Mining activity in these areas not only degrades the environment but also threatens livelihoods that are closely tied to the land. The ruling has drawn strong political responses. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav urged residents of Delhi to support efforts to protect the Aravallis, describing the range as inseparable from the city’s survival. Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, writing in The Hindu, linked mining in the Aravallis to declining air and water quality in the capital and criticised the Union Government’s approach to environmental protection. The Union Government has denied that the ruling will lead to increased mining, stating that it would be incorrect to conclude that mining is permitted in all landforms below 100 metres. Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav has maintained that only 0.19 per cent of the Aravallis is currently open to mining and that economic considerations did not influence the definition. The Ministry has announced plans to expand prohibited zones and has directed the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education to identify areas where mining should be banned. No new mining leases will be issued until a Sustainable Mining Management Plan is finalised. Despite these assurances, activists remain unconvinced, arguing that reducing a complex ecological system to an elevation-based definition sets a troubling precedent for environmental governance.
