Aravalli Hills: When a Hill Has to Measure Up to Get Respect

About Aravalli Hills: When a Hill Has to Measure Up to Get Respect

The Aravalli Hills have been around for billions of years older than most countries older than democracy older than Delhi traffic and yet in November 2025 the Supreme Court of India decided that some of these ancient hills are too short to count Yes if a hill is under 100 metres it is no longer an Aravalli

On 20 November 2025 a bench led by Chief Justice B R Gavai with Justices K Vinod Chandran and N V Anjaria approved a government-backed definition that an Aravalli Hill rises 100 metres or more above local relief and a group of such hills forms an Aravalli Range The Court asked the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change to prepare a Management Plan for Sustainable Mining and to halt new mining leases until the plan is finalized The Court explained that a uniform definition is necessary to avoid ambiguity and to ensure systematic protection and sustainable use of the Aravalli ranges.

Numbers That Surprise

Most of the Aravalli ridges and low hills that have been quietly moderating climate supporting biodiversity and feeding aquifers suddenly do not qualify According to the Forest Survey of India only about 1 048 out of more than 12 000 mapped hills in Rajasthan meet the 100-metre standard So by law the rest are just decorative mounds Experts point out the irony hills that survived millions of years now fail a simple maths test.

Experts Weigh In

Environmentalists warn that a purely height-based definition misses the ecological point entirely Harjeet Singh of Satat Sampada Climate Foundation observed that calling only hills above 100 metres Aravallis is like saying only tall people can be citizens Meanwhile all the short hills are quietly keeping the region alive Similarly Vimlendu Jha cautioned that we are at risk of letting millions of years of ecology disappear just because it is slightly shorter than an arbitrary measuring stick.

Legal Irony

The contradiction becomes obvious when comparing the new height criterion with previous slope-based standards like the 3-degree slope rule which captured gentle ridges critical to groundwater and wildlife Senior environmental lawyer Ritwick Dutta said if only hills above 100 metres count nearly all gentle ridges disappear from legal protection The Court’s order is like saying only the tallest elephants get to roam the forest while the smaller ones are invisible.

At the same time the Supreme Court did try to strike a balance by halting fresh mining leases and ordering a sustainable management plan It recognized that development cannot bulldoze nature but the irony remains the hills that quietly do all the work are suddenly unprotected until the plan is finalized

Why the Aravallis Matter

The Aravalli Hills are more than geographical formations They moderate dust support biodiversity sustain water resources and buffer urban areas from desertification Even lower hills perform these functions every day without recognition applause or legal titles It is ironic that they have been protecting us for millions of years yet the law now asks them to stand taller to get credit 

The Supreme Court’s order highlights a larger challenge in Indian environmental law Can technical definitions ever capture ecological realities Can a number on a scale fully represent centuries of ecosystem services For the Aravalli Hills nature does not care about numbers but the law does