&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "WION Explains | What’s the controversy on Aravalli Hills and why it matters more than you think")
The Aravalli Hills, the world's oldest mountain range in north India, are at the centre of a fresh controversy after the Indian Supreme Court gave a new legal definition for them. While the central government has said that it's a technical clarification, activists are calling it a slow ecological unravelling. The controversy is around one specific question - "What qualifies as the Aravalli Hills?
The Indian apex court asked, in a week-old observation, for a clearer, scientific definition of the Aravalli Hills and Aravalli Range. The SC said that, as per the globally accepted standards, the Aravalli Hills are a landform with a rise of 100 metres from the surrounding ground, as a hill or mountain. To be specific with the definition, the SC has asked for a definition.
Now, environmentalists are saying that redefining hills purely by height could exclude large tracts of the Aravalli (especially in Haryana and Rajasthan) from protection. This will open them up to indiscriminate mining, real estate and infrastructure projects.
Why is it a huge topic?
The Aravalli ranges from Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi, and is far more than a geological relic. The hills work as a natural barrier against desertification. Activists argue that Aravalli is already subject to legal and illegal mining. And now, any dilution in the protection of the hills could accelerate biodiversity loss, worsen air quality in Delhi-NCR.
What did the opposition say?
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Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot turned out to be one of the loudest political voices to back the #SaveAravalli, a campaign on social media. Gehlot claimed that the new definition would destroy 90 per cent of the mountain range in the state.
Meanwhile, the Congress Party said on X, To save Aravalli, people are raising their voice, and villagers are protesting. Scientists and ecologists are sounding dire warnings, and communities are fighting to protect the land that sustains them. And yet, the Modi government refuses to listen because crony capitalists are their priorities."
The BJP hit back sharply. Party leaders accused the Opposition of fear-mongering and selective reading of the Supreme Court order. Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav asserted that "no relaxation has been granted" concerning the protection of the Aravalli region.
