Experts, activists warn: If the Aravallis go, North India will become a desert

By A Representative 

Marking World Desertification Day, the Aravalli Virasat Jan Abhiyaan, a broad coalition of environmentalists, ecologists, community leaders, researchers, lawyers and civil society groups, has raised alarm over what it describes as an “existential crisis” confronting the Aravalli mountain range, warning that continued destruction of the ancient ecosystem could accelerate desertification and threaten the environmental security of North India.

In a press release issued on the occasion, the campaign, quoting experts and activists, said the nearly two-billion-year-old Aravalli range, stretching about 700 kilometres across Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, has been subjected to extensive degradation over the past five decades due to both legal and illegal mining, stone crushing, real estate expansion and construction activities.

Neelam Ahluwalia, Co-Founder of the Aravalli Virasat Jan Abhiyaan, said that the destruction of the hills has reached alarming proportions, with more than a dozen breaches opening up across the range from Ajmer and Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan to Mahendergarh in Haryana. According to her, these gaps have enabled dust from the Thar Desert to move eastward into Rajasthan, Haryana, western Uttar Pradesh and the Delhi-NCR region, worsening air pollution and increasing the intensity of dust storms in recent years.

“Experts directly link desertification to the large-scale destruction of the Aravallis by mining,” Ahluwalia said, adding that the loss of vegetation due to mining activities increases the risk of desertification and poses serious threats to food and water security in north-western India.

The coalition also highlighted the critical role played by the Aravallis in groundwater recharge and regional water security. Ashok Shrimali, General Secretary of the organisation Mines, Minerals & People, said the mountain range functions as a major water recharge zone for Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh.

He noted that the natural cracks and fissures in the hills have the capacity to recharge approximately two million litres of water per hectare annually. However, he alleged that mining, hill cutting, blasting operations, toxic landfills and waste dumping in abandoned mining pits have significantly altered groundwater patterns and reduced water quality.

Shrimali said groundwater levels in many mining-affected areas have fallen to depths of 1,000 to 2,000 feet, affecting drinking water availability and irrigation. He further claimed that chemicals used in blasting operations contaminate groundwater and surface water bodies, while continuous operation of stone crushers generates silica dust linked to respiratory illnesses.

According to the coalition, mining activities have also damaged grazing lands, contributed to declining livestock populations, reduced agricultural productivity and adversely affected traditional livelihoods dependent on farming and cattle rearing. Residents living near mining and stone-crushing sites, it said, frequently report health problems including asthma, tuberculosis and silicosis.

The campaign also focused on the recent intervention of the Supreme Court regarding the definition and protection of the Aravalli region. Referring to the apex court’s order of May 25, 2026, which constituted a new committee to examine the contentious 100-metre Aravalli definition, social activist Ashok Chaudhary from Gujarat called for changes in the committee’s composition.

He argued that because the new panel has been tasked with reviewing an October 2025 report prepared by a committee headed by the Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), the review process should be led by independent experts rather than serving ministry officials to avoid any conflict of interest.

Chaudhary demanded that the committee be chaired by an independent environmental expert, ecologist or scientist with specialised knowledge of the Aravalli region. He also called for the inclusion of experts in public health, occupational issues, traditional livelihoods, ecology, wildlife and hydrology so that the impacts of mining can be assessed comprehensively. The coalition further urged that the committee’s report be submitted directly to the Supreme Court rather than through any ministry or government department.

Sadhna Meena, a Bhil Adivasi grassroots leader working with mining-affected communities in southern Rajasthan, stressed the need for direct public consultation. She said affected communities want an in-person and transparent consultation process rather than one limited to written submissions via email or post.

Meena urged the committee to visit mining-affected villages across Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat and interact directly with residents living close to mining and stone-crushing operations. She also argued that the current deadline of August 31, 2026, may not be sufficient for a thorough assessment and should be extended.

Durga Shanker, a social activist from Pratapgarh district in Rajasthan, called for an independent cumulative social, environmental and health impact assessment covering the entire Aravalli range. He said such a study should evaluate damage caused over the last 50 years to forests, rivers, groundwater systems, agriculture, livestock-based livelihoods and public health due to mining, stone crushing, real estate development, encroachments, waste dumping and related activities.

He proposed that national-level institutions and experts in hydrology, ecology, wildlife, environmental sciences, social sciences and occupational health be involved in the exercise, along with civil society representatives. He also sought accountability for mining-related diseases, including silicosis, through application of the “Polluter Pays Principle”.

Kailash Meena, who has worked with mining-affected communities in northern Rajasthan for more than three decades, called for a review of policies permitting water-intensive mining and dust-washing activities in already water-stressed areas. He expressed concern over environmental clearance provisions that allow mining operations to intersect groundwater tables with regulatory permission, arguing that such practices have contributed to severe groundwater depletion across the Aravalli belt.

He further demanded a review of compliance by licensed mining operators and sought closure of mines and stone-crushing units allegedly violating environmental norms, with liability fixed on operators for ecological and social damage.

Kailash Yadav, Secretary of the Jodhpura Sangharsh Samiti, criticised proposals for a uniform Aravalli definition, arguing that such an approach could exclude large areas from legal protection. He urged the Supreme Court to direct governments to promote alternative construction materials and reduce dependence on stone extracted from the Aravallis.

Describing mining as inherently extractive and environmentally damaging, Yadav called for the remaining portions of the Aravalli range to be declared a “Critical Ecological Zone” in recognition of their role in supporting water security, biodiversity and ecosystem services for millions of people across north-western India.

The Aravalli Virasat Jan Abhiyaan concluded by warning that continued degradation of the mountain range could have far-reaching consequences for water availability, air quality, agriculture, biodiversity and climate resilience. The coalition appealed for stronger legal protection, independent scientific assessment and meaningful public participation in decisions affecting one of India’s oldest and most ecologically significant mountain systems.