New Delhi, Jan 6: A people-driven conservation collective on Monday said nearly one-third of the Aravalli range was at ecological risk following the Centre’s recent classification that fixes 100 metres as the minimum height for hills to qualify for legal protection.
Citing an independent satellite audit, the group said 31.8 per cent of the Aravalli hills fall below the 100-metre threshold and are effectively left without statutory safeguards. The analysis was carried out using satellite data and the Copernicus Digital Elevation Model (FABDEM), along with forensic geographic assessment.
The remarks come amid uncertainty over the legal definition of the Aravalli hills, with the Supreme Court having put its earlier directions on the issue in abeyance.
Climate scientist Sudhanshu, associated with the study, said the findings showed that ecologically vital hills and ridges were being excluded from protection due to what he described as an arbitrary height-based classification. “Our analysis confirms that 31.8 per cent of the total hill area falls below the 100-metre mark and is now stripped of legal protection,” he said.
The collective rejected the Centre’s estimate that only 0.19 per cent of the Aravalli area was affected, calling the figure inconsistent with the geological reality of the country’s oldest mountain range.
According to the study, the low-elevation zones of the Aravallis are not wastelands but function as critical groundwater recharge areas and dust barriers for nearly 30 crore people across the region. The group warned that gaps in protection were already contributing to the expansion of the Thar Desert in vulnerable areas.
Demanding stronger safeguards, the collective called for the entire Aravalli range to be declared a fully protected zone, with no distinction between hills and mountains based on height. It also sought a complete ban on mining in the Aravalli hills, allowing exceptions only for the extraction of strategically important rare earth minerals.
