New Delhi, Dec. 29 -- The Supreme Court on Monday ordered halting of all mining work on Aravalli and formed a committee of independent experts to arrive at the final definition of the mountain range as to what can be deemed ecologically sensitive and what be opened for mining.The latest order supersedes the earlier order in which SC had accepted the definition of hill ecosystem as finalised by committees formed largely by the government. The SC took notice of the hue and cry raised by several environmentalists who suspected government-backed committees were actually diluting the rules to favour mining companies.
A largely plateaued mountain range straddling Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat, the Aravalli range is home to honey-badger, ...