Why the Aravalli Range Is Central to India’s Ecology — and Why It Is Under Threat

Stretching across western India, the Aravalli Range is not merely an ancient geological formation; it is a living ecological system that underpins water security, climate stability, air quality and biodiversity for millions. As policy debates intensify around mining, land diversion and large tourism projects, the Aravallis have once again emerged as a fault line between short-term development and long-term environmental survival.

A 3-Billion-Year-Old Backbone of Indian Civilisation

The Aravalli Range, stretching roughly 692 kilometres, is among the oldest mountain systems in the world. Known in ancient texts as “Pariyatra”, it formed the protective boundary of “Brahmavarta”, the heartland of early Vedic civilisation. The range supported river systems such as the Saraswati, Drishadvati, Sahibi and Luni, sustaining agriculture, settlements and metallurgy.

Archaeological evidence shows that the valleys of the Aravallis were a global metallurgical hub, supplying copper and gold to the Harappan civilisation. Sites such as Kalibangan — home to the world’s earliest known ploughed field — and Rakhigarhi, now recognised as larger than Mohenjo-daro, underline the region’s foundational role in human history.

The Aravallis as Northwest India’s Ecological Shield

Often described as the “green lung” of northwest India, the Aravallis today provide ecological services that extend far beyond their physical footprint. Acting as a natural barrier, the continuous ridge slows the eastward movement of sands from the Thar Desert, helping control desertification in Haryana, Punjab and western Uttar Pradesh.

The range also influences regional climate. Its hills in Haryana and Delhi channel monsoon moisture into the plains while shielding the region from intense dry westerly winds. This climatic moderation is crucial for agriculture, urban habitability and ecosystem stability.

Water Security for Delhi and Haryana

For the water-stressed populations of Haryana and the Delhi NCR, the Aravallis are a critical groundwater recharge system. The hills, fractures and vegetative cover enable rainwater infiltration, sustaining aquifers, streams and wetlands.

Smaller ridges function as localised micro-watersheds. Their loss would not only reduce groundwater recharge but also convert recharge zones into stagnant pits that collect polluted runoff — a phenomenon already observed in mined areas of the range.

Air Quality, Dust Control and Public Health

The Aravallis act as a physical and biological filter for air pollution. Forested slopes and scrublands trap dust and particulate matter, moderating the severity of dust storms that otherwise sweep into Delhi-NCR from the desert.

Fragmenting this natural barrier would accelerate the movement of dust and pollutants into urban centres, worsening already severe air-quality conditions. In a region struggling with chronic respiratory disease, the public health implications are substantial.

Biodiversity, Corridors and Genetic Wealth

Despite decades of degradation from mining and deforestation, the Aravallis remain a biodiversity-rich zone. The range hosts endemic species, medicinal plants and a valuable genetic reservoir adapted to semi-arid conditions.

Crucially, it functions as a wildlife corridor, enabling movement between Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi. Disrupting this connectivity risks isolating populations, increasing human-wildlife conflict and eroding ecological resilience.

The “100-Metre Rule” and the Mining Threat

A major emerging risk is the policy opening for diversion — particularly for mining — of hills less than 100 metres in height. This is alarming because over 90% of the Aravalli landscape falls below this threshold. Removing these “smaller” hills would still shatter the integrity of the range, breaching its dust-control and water-regulation functions.

Experience shows that post-mining rehabilitation conditions are rarely enforced. Broken lands often become contaminated sumps, leaching pollutants into groundwater used for drinking and irrigation.

Evidence of Water Contamination and Health Risks

Data from the Central Ground Water Board (2024–25) and health studies reveal worrying trends in the Aravalli mining belt. Groundwater shows elevated levels of lead and cadmium (above 0.01 mg/L) and fluoride exceeding 4.7 mg/L, linked to neurological damage and skeletal deformities in children.

Nitrate concentrations have risen by around 60% since 2017 and are nearing permissible limits. These indicators suggest that the ecological damage is already translating into long-term public health risks.

The Proposed Safari Park and Ecological Fragility

Another contentious proposal is the conversion of large tracts of Aravalli forest into an open zoo or safari park. International examples from semi-arid regions — in Africa, the Middle East, Australia and southern Europe — show that such projects often trigger ecological collapse.

High-volume tourism infrastructure, artificial water bodies, captive animal demands and land breaking place immense stress on low-biomass, xeric ecosystems. Soil crusts are destroyed, desertification accelerates, and large areas become ecological dead zones contributing to regional dust pollution.

Lessons from Global Ecological Disasters

Global precedents offer stark warnings. In the Central Appalachian Mountains of the United States, mountain-top removal mining buried thousands of kilometres of streams, destroyed forests and caused severe health impacts. Similar outcomes have followed large-scale mining in the Andes of Peru and Chile, and deforestation-linked extraction in Brazil and Indonesia.

These cases show how prioritising short-term economic gain over ecological integrity can leave communities impoverished, unhealthy and environmentally trapped.

Why the Aravallis Remain Undervalued in Policy

India has begun developing frameworks to value ecosystem services, but the Aravallis still lack a comprehensive regional natural-capital accounting approach. As long as benefits such as water regulation, carbon storage, dust control, biodiversity and livelihoods remain unpriced, development projects will appear disproportionately profitable — especially when land is classified as “non-forest”.

This undervaluation distorts policy choices, systematically favouring extraction and construction over conservation.

An Environmental and Socio-Economic Imperative

Saving the Aravalli Range is not only about preserving the cradle of Harappan and Vedic civilisations. It is an urgent environmental and socio-economic necessity for northwest India’s future. Without recognising the full economic and ecological value of the Aravallis, short-term development pressures will continue to erode a system that quietly sustains millions — until its collapse becomes irreversible.