SC Revisits Aravalli Ruling: CJI-Led Bench to Hear Case on December 29
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The Supreme Court has taken suo motu cognisance of the contentious Aravalli issue, reopening the possibility of a judicial re-examination of its recent ruling that restricted the mountain range to landforms rising at least 100 metres above the local relief. The case, titled 'IN RE: DEFINITION OF ARAVALLI HILLS AND RANGES AND ANCILLARY ISSUES', will be heard on December 29 by a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and justices JK Maheshwari and AG Masih. A disputed definition of the Aravallis, adopted by the Supreme Court on November 20, has sparked widespread criticism from environmentalists and experts. The definition, which measures the mountain range's elevation from the base of each hill to its peak, excludes numerous smaller hills and undulating landscapes that do not meet the 100-metre threshold. Critics argue that this approach marks a sharp departure from the slope-based criteria earlier used by the Forest Survey of India (FSI). The controversy has significant implications for the Aravalli range, which stretches over 700 kilometres and plays a critical ecological role in preventing the Thar desert from advancing eastwards. The range also supports a diverse ecosystem of native vegetation, birds, insects, reptiles, and mammals, making it one of north India's most ecologically significant landscapes. The Supreme Court's suo motu proceedings come amid growing public and expert criticism of the definition. Environmental experts have warned that initiating mapping and mining-related processes based on a disputed definition could permanently exclude large swathes of the mountain range from legal protection, potentially opening them up to mining and real estate development. Parallel to the suo motu proceedings, the Supreme Court is also scheduled to hear a plea filed by RP Balwan, a former forest officer who mapped the Aravallis in Haryana in 2008. Balwan has urged the court to clarify that the entire Aravalli ecosystem, as identified by the FSI in 2010 without any height-based restriction, must be legally protected from unsustainable activity.
