Overview
- The Environment Ministry instructed Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Delhi‑NCR to stop approving new mining leases across the Aravallis until a Management Plan for Sustainable Mining is finalized.
- ICFRE will draft the science‑based plan for the entire range, assess cumulative impacts, and identify additional prohibited zones, with the draft to be opened for public consultation.
- States were told that existing mines may operate only under tighter environmental safeguards and strict conformity with Supreme Court directions.
- Policy documents note carve‑outs allowing new leases for critical, strategic and atomic minerals as notified under the MMDR Act, 1957.
- Opposition leaders and environmental experts criticized the 100‑metre elevation definition accepted by the Supreme Court, warning it could exclude lower ridges, while the government denied any dilution of protections.