Jairam Ramesh questions Bhupender Yadav; claims Aravalli redefinition will fragment it

Ramesh said there are understandably widespread concerns with the redefinition of the Aravalli Hills that restrict them to landforms having an elevation of 100 m or more.

New Delhi: Amid a row over the redefinition of the Aravallis, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday posed four questions to Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav and claimed that the move will lead to fragmentation and undermining of the geographical and ecological integrity of the entire mountain range.

In a letter to Yadav, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said there are understandably widespread concerns with the redefinition of the Aravalli Hills that restrict them to landforms having an elevation of 100 metres or more.

"In this connection, please permit me to raise four specific questions for your consideration. Is it not a fact that the definition of the Aravalli Hills and Ranges in Rajasthan, since 2012, has been based on a report of the Forest Survey of India (FSI) of August 28, 2010, that said the following: 'All such areas having a slope of three degrees or more shall be delineated as hills, along with a uniform 100-metre-wide buffer added to the downhill side to account for possible expansion corresponding to a 20-metre hill height, equivalent to the contour interval of 20 metres. Flat areas, tabletops, depressions and valleys falling within these delineated regions shall also be included as part of the hills'," Ramesh posed.

He also asked whether it was not a fact that the FSI, in a communication to the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change dated September 20, 2025, had stated that "the smaller hill formations of the Aravallis serve as natural barriers against desertification by stopping heavier sand particles-thus protecting Delhi and neighbouring plains from sandstorms."

"Because the protective effect of a barrier against windblown sand scales directly with its height, even modest hills of 10 to 30 metres act as strong natural wind breaks".

"Is it not a fact that the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) constituted by the Supreme Court had, in its report of November 7, 2025, concluded that 164 mining leases in Rajasthan were inside the Aravalli Hills and Ranges as defined by the then-prevailing FSI definition?" Ramesh asked.

"Is it not true that the redefinition will result in loss of numerous small hillocks and other landforms and also lead to fragmentation and undermining of the geographical and ecological integrity of the entire Aravalli Hills and Ranges covering four states?" the Congress leader asked.

The opposition Congress has claimed that more than 90 per cent of the Aravallis will not be protected under the redefinition of the hills and will open them up for mining and other activities. Following a row over the issue, the Centre has issued directions to states for a complete ban on granting new mining leases within the mountain range.