"BJP govt should urge court to provide protection and ensure biodiversity is protected": Congress' Sachin Pilot on Aravalli row

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], December 23 (ANI): Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Monday criticised the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) over the Aravalli Hills row, saying that they should urge the Supreme Court for the protection of biodiversity. 

Speaking to ANI, Sachin Pilot said, "We will have to urge the Supreme Court to reconsider its decision, because the four governments in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Delhi are all BJP governments. The central government is also the BJP. So, when there are four engines working together, then they should urge the court to provide protection and ensure that the expansion of the desert stops, pollution stops, and our biodiversity is protected.”  

The Congress leader cited ecological disturbances being caused by illegal mining, underlining that the Aravalli Hills provide protection to the entire NCR region. 

“Our entire ecology will be disturbed, and the Aravalli range provides protection to the entire NCR. If we allow illegal mining to continue, what will we leave behind for our future generations? On 26th, in Jaipur, the student union and all our colleagues are organising a march to seek support for protecting the Aravalli range," Pilot said.

Taking a swipe at the BJP, he emphasised that the government has been negligent towards the Aravalli Hills issue and bears no responsibility whatsoever. He also said that the opposition is set to hold a march in Jaipur on December 26 to highlight the issue.

"The government has been completely exposed on the Aravalli issue. The direction they are heading in makes it clear that they bear no responsibility toward our mountain range. If we destroy it, who will be held accountable?... The government is going to court and accepting things that lead to the end of the Aravalli—we oppose that. We will hold a march in Jaipur on December 26..." he said. 

The Supreme Court accepted the Centre's definition of the Aravalli hills, which states that "any hills in the range with an elevation of less than 100 metres are not subject to the strictures against mining."

The apex court also accepted the recommendations for sustainable mining in the Aravalli Hills and the steps to be taken for preventing illegal mining. 

The Union Environment Ministry has also issued a detailed clarification, stating that no new mining leases will be allowed until a comprehensive study is undertaken, in line with the Supreme Court's November 20 order.

The Supreme Court has directed the Environment Ministry to prepare a Mining Plan for Sustainable Mining (MPSM) for the entire Aravalli range before granting any new leases.

With the definition now operational, the court has ordered that no fresh mining leases be issued until the MPSM is finalised, a move officials say acts as a preventive shield against immediate ecological damage.

The Aravalli range is a 670-kilometre-long mountain range in the north-western part of India. The highest elevation of the range has been recorded at 1,722 metres.

The hill starts near Delhi, passes through Haryana, Rajasthan, and ends in Gujarat. The highest peak of the range is known as Guru Shikhar, in Mount Abu, Rajasthan.

The Aravalli range is the oldest fold-mountain belt in India, dating back around 2 billion years. (ANI)