Gurugram: Members of ‘Aravalli Bachao Sanstha’ stage a demonstration as part of the Save Aravalli movement, near the residence of Haryana minister Rao Narbir Singh, in Gurugram. (PTI Photo)
NEW DELHI: A day after clarifying how only 0.19% of the total 1.44 lakh sq km area of Aravalli can be eligible for mining, Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav on Monday said no new mining lease can be granted in the Aravalli hills and ranges till the finalisation of the management plan for sustainable mining (MPSM) for the entire landscape, and all existing mines must comply strictly with central committee’s stringent safeguard.Calling protests in certain quarters against the latest move a misinformed campaign based on wrong interpretation of facts, Yadav emphasised that the definition adopted by the Supreme Court does not relax any restrictions. He also accused the Congress party of spreading “lies”. The apex court had last month considered the recommendations of a central committee regarding a uniform policy level definition of the Aravalli hills and ranges, specifically in the context of regulating mining, and accepted that all the landforms enclosed within the lowest binding contour, encircling hills of height of 100 metres or more irrespective of their height and slopes, are excluded for the purpose of grant of mining lease.Asked about the rationale behind adopting the 100 metres height threshold by the central committee, headed by Union environment secretary, Yadav said the panel used the globally accepted scientific standards (Richard Murphy’s Landform Classification of 1968) that identify landforms rising 100 metres above the local relief as hills and prohibit mining on both the hill and its supporting slopes.Cultivation/agriculture is the dominant land-use category, across the Aravalli landscape districts, accounting for approximately 55% of the combined geographical area of the 37 districts falling within the Aravalli hills and ranges. A large area of Aravalli has already been covered under habitations over a period of time. Part of many cities, including Udaipur, Ajmer, Alwar, South Delhi, Gurugram, Banaskantha fall within the boundaries of Aravalli.Besides accepting the definition of the Aravalli hills and ranges, the apex court in its Nov 20 order also directed the environment ministry to prepare MPSM through the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) for the entire Aravallis on the lines of such plan for the Saranda forests in Jharkhand.Yadav said there is no basis for arriving at the conclusion that 90% of the Aravalli has been opened up for mining when the MPSM is yet to be prepared as per the SC’s directions. “The Congress, which allowed rampant illegal mining in Rajasthan during its tenure, is spreading confusion, misinformation and lies about the issue,” he alleged.“The definition adopted by the Court does not relax any existing restrictions. Instead, it provides additional safeguards through standardised and technically validated basis for regulation, supported by enhanced oversight and scientific planning,” said the minister.At present, 277 sq km out of a total of nearly 1.44 lakh sq km of areas in Aravalli are under mining lease. It includes the highest 247 sq km in Rajasthan’s 20 districts, 27 sq km in Gujarat’s five districts and 3 sq km in Haryana’s seven districts. No mining activity is permitted in Delhi whose five districts fall in the Aravalli range.
