Supreme Court to Hear Aravalli Dispute Case on Monday
A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and comprising Justice J.K. Maheshwari and Justice A.G. Masih, will hear the case listed as “Definition of Aravalli Hills and Mountain Ranges and Related Issues.”
The Aravalli dispute arose after the Centre notified a new definition of the Aravalli Hills. Environmental activists and scientists have raised concerns that the revised definition could allow large areas of the fragile mountain ecosystem to be opened up for mining activities.
At present, the Supreme Court has stayed the grant of new mining leases in the Aravalli region until a comprehensive and sustainable mining management plan is prepared.
In May, the Supreme Court issued show-cause notices to senior officials of the Delhi government, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) commissioner, and a private developer. The notices were issued over alleged violations of the Court’s 1996 order in the M.C. Mehta vs Union of India case, after construction of a housing society was carried out in the ecologically sensitive “morphological ridge” area of Vasant Kunj.
The 1996 directive clearly stated that ridge land must be protected from encroachment and cannot be used for non-forest purposes without prior approval from the Supreme Court.
The case relates to the protection of Delhi’s ridge area, which serves as the city’s green lung and is a vital part of the Aravalli ecosystem.
The current controversy was triggered by a new definition of the Aravalli Hills proposed by a committee under the Union Environment Ministry and approved by the Supreme Court on November 20. Although the Court accepted a uniform, elevation-based definition recommended by a Centre-appointed expert committee, it has intervened multiple times to safeguard one of the world’s oldest mountain ranges.
Aravalli Jungle Safari Case
In October, the Supreme Court directed the Haryana government to halt all work on the proposed Aravalli jungle safari project, which was projected to be the world’s largest zoo-safari.
A bench led by Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran issued notice to the Haryana government following a petition filed by five retired Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers and the environmental group People for Aravallis.
The petition challenged the Haryana government’s plan to develop a jungle safari across 10,000 acres of ecologically sensitive Aravalli land, arguing that the project favours commercial development over environmental restoration crucial to the ecological health of the Delhi-NCR region.
