India, Dec. 30 -- The Supreme Court's now-stayed definition of the Aravalli Range relies on a 100-metre height threshold that could exclude most of the landscape.

Scientists and environmental groups warn the move ignores decades of ecological research on how the Aravallis function as a desert barrier, aquifer and wildlife corridor.

The ruling raises unresolved questions about the sidelining of expert institutions, the scale of denotification, and new exemptions for critical and atomic mineral mining.

On November 20, 2025, the Supreme Court accepted a definition of the Aravalli Range based on a 100-metre elevation threshold above the surrounding land. On December 29, it stayed this very judgment and referred the matter back for reconsid...