Unregulated mining in the Aravalli range poses multi-dimensional threats to ecology, water security, and community livelihoods in north-west India. Discuss with reference to existing legal frameworks and their implementation gaps.

Q. Unregulated mining in the Aravalli range poses multi-dimensional threats to ecology, water security, and community livelihoods in north-west India. Discuss with reference to existing legal frameworks and their implementation gaps. (15 marks, 250-350 words)

Stretching about 650 km across Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and Gujarat, the Aravallis are India's oldest fold mountains and the natural barrier against Thar Desert expansion [2]. Unregulated quarrying here is therefore not a local mining issue but a threat to the ecological security of north-west India.

Ecological threats - Loss of hill cover accelerates desertification, as the range is the primary shield protecting the Indo-Gangetic plains from Thar encroachment [2]. - Blasting and quarrying fragment habitats of leopards, hyenas and migratory birds, and denude scrub forests targeted for restoration under the Aravalli Green Wall Project, which greens a 5-km buffer across four states [2]. - Barren, mined-out slopes add dust and particulate load to already polluted Delhi-NCR air.

Water security - Aravalli foothills and valleys are critical groundwater recharge zones for NCR and Rajasthan [2]; deep quarrying breaches aquifer structures and disrupts recharge in an over-exploited belt. - Rejuvenation of ponds, lakes and streams in the landscape is a stated restoration goal, underlining the range's hydrological role [2].

Community livelihoods - Agrarian communities dependent on Aravalli-fed wells and pastures lose both water and grazing land; agroforestry and pasture development are recognised livelihood needs [2]. - Illegal extraction erodes state revenue while shifting health costs of dust and heavy traffic onto vulnerable districts such as Nuh (Mewat).

Legal framework and implementation gaps - Mining is absolutely prohibited in protected areas, eco-sensitive zones, tiger reserves, wetlands and CAMPA plantation sites, alongside the MMDR Act, 1957 and Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 [1]. - The Supreme Court froze new mining leases until a Management Plan for Sustainable Mining (MPSM) is prepared [1][3]. - Gaps persist: definitional ambiguity — the SC stayed its own 20 November 2025 order on the 100-metre elevation criterion and ordered a fresh expert committee [4]; weak district-level enforcement despite mandated drones, CCTV, weighbridges and task forces [1]; and multi-state coordination deficits.

The Aravalli crisis reflects a governance gap between strong prohibitions and weak enforcement. A scientifically inclusive definition, MPSM-based regulated mining, real-time satellite monitoring and community-anchored restoration can reconcile mineral needs with ecology, advancing Article 48-A and India's land degradation neutrality commitments.

(~340 words)

Sources: 1. Aravalli Hills: Protecting Ecology and Ensuring Sustainable Development — PIB Factsheet (Dec 2025) — absolute mining prohibition zones, CAMPA sites, MPSM freeze, drone/CCTV/weighbridge enforcement 2. Aravalli Green Wall Project launch — PIB, MoEFCC — 650 km range across four states, Thar barrier, groundwater recharge, water-body and pasture/agroforestry restoration 3. No new mining leases in ecologically sensitive areas — Union Minister Bhupender Yadav, News on AIR (22 Dec 2025) — lease freeze pending sustainable mining plan 4. Supreme Court orders formation of new expert committee on Aravalli range definition — News on AIR (29 Dec 2025) — stay of the 20 Nov 2025 order, 100-metre criterion, fresh expert committee