Supreme Court's Suspension of Aravalli Definition Judgment
On December 29, the Chief Justice of India-led bench of the Supreme Court suspended its November 2025 judgment concerning the definition of the Aravalli hills. This decision was made to address the need for further clarification before the report or the Court’s directions could be implemented.
Issues with the Definition
- Acknowledged the creation of a "structural paradox" between legal definitions and ecological protection.
- The definition specified "Aravalli Hills" as landforms with a minimum elevation of 100 meters, with "Aravalli Ranges" being two or more such hills within 500 meters of each other.
- This raised the issue of negative definition, where defining protected areas implicitly defines non-protected areas.
Implications and Challenges
- Forest Survey of India mapping showed only 1,048 out of 12,081 formations met the 100-meter threshold.
- The adopted definition mirrors Rajasthan's 2006 criteria, during which significant environmental degradation occurred.
- An alternative slope-based framework had been proposed but was not adopted.
- The Aravalli range is crucial for ecological functions like groundwater recharge and biodiversity but these don't align with simple elevation criteria.
Legal and Environmental Considerations
- Spatial fragmentation concerns due to exclusion of 500-meter gaps between hills, potentially leading to mining.
- The case involves the precautionary principle, where lack of complete scientific certainty shouldn't delay environmental protection.
- The Court's emphasis on scientific demarcation conflicted with precautionary measures.
Judicial Restraint and Environmental Governance
- The Court's suspension highlights the need for more refined environmental determinations.
- Emphasizes the challenge of aligning ecological realities with legal standards.
- Proposes a committee to address issues like graduated protection regimes and ecosystem service-based criteria.
