Supreme Court Stays Its Own Verdict on Aravalli Hills, Halts Mining Activities Amid Ecological Concerns

SC Orders Interim Ban on Mining, Calls for Independent Expert Committee to Reassess Aravalli Definition.

In a significant reversal of its earlier stance, the Supreme Court of India on Monday, December 29, 2025, stayed its own November 20 verdict defining the Aravalli Hills, effectively putting a halt to all new mining activities and mapping based on the contentious “100-metre elevation” rule.

A vacation bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih, placed the previous directions in abeyance, citing concerns that the height-based definition could be misconstrued to facilitate unregulated mining, thereby threatening the ecological integrity of the range. The November order had defined Aravalli Hills only as landforms with a minimum elevation of 100 metres, which experts warned would exclude roughly 11,000 out of 12,000 hills, leaving them vulnerable to mining and real estate development.

Acting suo motu, the Court took cognisance of widespread public protests and environmentalist concerns, questioning whether mining in the “gaps” between hills—within 500 metres—could compromise the range’s role as a natural barrier against desertification and a critical groundwater recharge zone.

The Court has directed the Union Government and the four Aravalli states—Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Gujarat—to suspend all new mining leases until further review. It has also called for the formation of a fair, impartial, and independent expert committee to reassess the scientific validity of the 100-metre threshold and the overall ecological impact. The next hearing is scheduled for January 21, 2026, when the Court will examine the composition of the new committee and review the interim measures.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta highlighted that several misconceptions regarding the earlier order necessitated this fresh assessment, making this a rare instance of the Supreme Court staying its own recent judgment to prevent what it termed a potential threat to the nation’s ecological integrity.