Leaders, ecologists urge SC-appointed panel to seek more time, record mining impact, Pg14

Key Highlights:

• Opposition Members of Parliament (MPs), Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs), and ecologists have urged the Supreme Court-constituted High-Powered Committee (HPC) reviewing the Aravalli definition to extend its deadline beyond August 31.
• Concerns were raised regarding inadequate engagement with mining-impacted communities and limited district coverage by the HPC.
• Rajasthan's Leader of Opposition, Tika Ram Jully, and MPs Rajkumar Roat and Amra Ram highlighted health and environmental issues due to mining.
• Ecologist Pradip Krishen emphasized the Aravalli Range's role as a natural barrier against desertification and called for a comprehensive environmental and social impact study.
• Amra Ram specifically demanded protection for the Girjan river ecosystem, including Buchara dam and 'oran' (sacred groves), from mining activities.

Detailed Insights:

• The HPC was formed by the Supreme Court to independently review the definition and delineation of the Aravalli Range, with its report due by August 31.
• The committee's mandate includes assessing whether Aravalli hills above 100 meters constitute a continuous ecological formation and if mining should be permitted in intervening areas.
• Previously, the Supreme Court had accepted a definition based on a 100-meter elevation and 500-meter inter-hill gap, but later stayed its order due to controversy.
• The Aravalli Range is crucial for preventing the eastward expansion of the Thar Desert and acts as "green lungs" for North-Western India.
• The Forest Survey of India (FSI) had previously used slope-based criteria for defining the Aravallis in a 2010 report to the Supreme Court.
• The call for a cumulative impact study across all Aravalli districts aims to provide a clear picture of the range's carrying capacity.
• Orans, or sacred groves, are community-conserved woodland areas in Rajasthan, vital for biodiversity and water management, and have been directed by the Supreme Court to be classified as forests.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Aravalli Range: An ancient fold mountain system in North-Western India, crucial for ecology, climate, and preventing desertification.
• High-Powered Committee (HPC): A body constituted by the Supreme Court to review complex issues, in this case, the definition and protection of the Aravalli Range.
• Desertification: Land degradation in arid, semi-arid, and dry sub-humid areas, leading to loss of biological productivity, often exacerbated by human activities.
• Orans (Sacred Groves): Community-conserved forest patches in Rajasthan, revered for their ecological and socio-religious significance, protecting biodiversity and water sources.