One of the most unreported environmental problems in India is the slow extinction of the aravalli Hills. The aravalli range that extends in the states of Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and Gujarat is one of the oldest mountain groups worldwide. But now big portions of it are mined, ruptured by enterprising buildings, and stripped naked.
India has its northern plains that were silently guarded by the aravalli Hills of India decades ago. They shielded desert winds, replenished underground water, controlled the rains and filtered the contaminated air until they arrived in the big cities. It is more than mere ecological problem that has caused their degradation and its urban future is directly threatened in India.
This explainer deconstructs the meaning of the loss of aravalli Hills to the Indian and urban environment and why this crisis is so horrific, and what might be the outcome in case current tendencies persist.
The aravalli hills: Indian abandoned eco-screen
The aravalli Hills are of prehistoric period and are 1.5 billion years old. The aravallis as compared with towering mountain ranges are low lying, rocky and extensive in the north-western part of India.
They have played a minor but a very practical role.
They act as:
- Naturally produced soil shield against desertification.
- A groundwater recharge zone
- A weather controller of the north-western India.
- An air filter to Delhi-NCR.
There would be an arid desert terrain all along north India without the aravallis.
The way aravalli Hills are being ruined
It did not occur overnight when the aravalli Hills were destroyed. It is a consequence of decades of oversight and policy loopholes and unregulated economic action.
The most harmful determinants consist of:
- Unregulated mining
- Illegal construction
- Deforestation
- Urban expansion
- Lack of strong implementation of the environmental laws.
This is in spite of court orders and environmental notifications where large areas are still being degraded.
Aravalli hills Mining: A Mute Environmental catastrophe
The most massive activity that causes degradation of Aravalli Hills is mining.
Mining has led to the pre-employment of stone, quartz, marble, and sand:
- Flattened hillocks
- Destroyed vegetation
- Exposed fragile rock layers
In Rajasthan and Haryana, mining pits have since substituted the forested declivities in the districts. Such pits interfere with the natural water flow and permanently change the terrain.
When a hill has been mined there is none that can be replenished.
Unlawful Building and Developing in Urban Areas
The other significant threat is aravalli Hills unlawful construction particularly in the areas surrounding the Delhi-NCR.
Farmhouses, resorts, roads and real estate projects have infiltrated conserved areas. Several of such constructions take advantage of a land classification leak or lax local jurisdiction.
The aravallis are being perceived like a waste land rather than an ecological infrastructure as urban areas grow larger.
It is the urban attitude that is causing the disappearance of aravalli Hills at a faster rate than they have ever been lost.
Save Aravalli protest highlighting environmental concerns and land degradation.
Environmental Effects of loss of Aravalli Hills
The aravalli Hills environmental degradation has many far-reaching consequences.
Their degradation affects:
- Climate stability
- Air quality
- Water availability
- Biodiversity
- Urban resilience
The cascading environmental crisis is caused by the effect each of these has on others.
192 Aravalli mountains in India and the Increasing water crisis
aravallis recharge is one of the least known functions of the aravallis.
- Rainwater is able to dislodge the rocky terrain through:
- Percolate slowly
- Recharge aquifers
- Feed wells and lakes
With the flattening of hills and removal of vegetation, rainwater does not soak into the soil and runs off.
This is directly attributed to the water crisis in the aravalli Hills particularly in:
- Southern Haryana
- Western Rajasthan
- Parts of Delhi
Cities, which formerly used shallow wells are experiencing water shortages on a chronic basis.
An Aravalli Hills-Delhi Connection of Air Pollution
The correlation between the pollution of Delhi and the aravalli Hills is serious.
The aravallis serve to act as defense against dust storms of the Thar Desert. They also capture the particulate matter and reduce the speed of wind-borne pollution.
With the hills degraded:
- Dust storms go farther into the cities.
- The levels of pollution reach their peaks in winter.
- There is increased intensity of smog events.
That is why researchers tend to associate the air pollution of the aravalli Hills to the deteriorating air quality in Delhi-NCR.
Climate Change Effect: Increasing Heat and Scorching Weather
This effect of the aravalli Hills is now noticeable in the alteration in weather patterns.
The areas to degraded hills are experiencing:
- Use of increased surface temperatures.
- Reduced rainfall
- Longer dry spells
- Sudden extreme downpours
This affects all the land in the absence of vegetation and natural slopes and therefore the land is unable to moderate heat and moisture.
This adds to the urban heat islands and unpredictable monsoon patterns.
Biodiversity Loss in Aravalli Area
The support previously of the aravalli range:
- Leopards
- Nilgai
- Jackals
- Native bird species
- Medicinal plants
The habitat fragmentation removes the wildlife corridors.
There is increased human-animal antagonism and ecology demise in silence.
The ecological loss is not simply that–the cultural one, because the traditional people lose their tie to forests.
Real-Life Effect: The Village without Water
Some of the villagers in southern Haryana remember how hand pumps were used throughout the year. Nowadays, monsoon rains cannot stop the need for water tankers.
Local elders point to:
- Blasted hillocks
- Dry streams
- Dead grazing lands
Their first-hand experience is what statistics now prove presently; the extinction of the aravalli Hills is directly related to the distress of the rural areas.
Unrecognized policy gaps and the government
Even aravalli has been given great significance through various policy documents by the Indian authorities.
There has been an environmental flagship in environmental reports:
- Desertification risks
- Water stress
- Urban vulnerability
Nevertheless, it is not strictly enforced.
aravalli land is classified by different states thus causing confusion in regulating it, which developers take advantage of.
Illegal mining and construction are among the biggest threats to the fragile aravalli ecosystem.
The reason Cities Will Pay the Highest Price
As much as the rural areas are first affected and cities would suffer the most in the long term.
Without the aravallis:
- The pollution of Delhi will increase.
- Waters will undergo intense reasons in Gurgaon and Faridabad.
- Heatwaves will intensify
- The destruction of infrastructure due to floods will rise.
- Urban centers rely on natural systems which are hardly recognized.
Economic Development Vs Environmental Destruction
The clearing of the aravalli Hills is said to be done in the name of development.
This is window dressing though.
- The long-term costs include:
- Health impact of pollution.
- Water infrastructural cost.
- Climate adaptation costs
- Loss of ecosystem services
Natural development would not be possible without the stability of the environment.
What Would Happen When the aravallis is Lost Forever
Under the condition of the current trends, India may face:
- Increase in deserted conditions to the East.
- Chronic water shortages
- Extreme air quality crisis.
- Once gone, biodiversity will not come back.
- Greater climatic efforts movement.
This cannot be considered a far off future- it is happening.
Why the Aravalli Crisis is Still Lingering
The aravalli Hills cannot draw attention as much as the glaciers or floods can.
Their destruction is:
- Gradual
- Scattered
- Politically inconvenient
This complicates it until it is too late.
What Can Be Done Now
It is a great hurt–not irremediable–when swiftly attended to.
Key priorities include:
- The mining bans should be enforced strictly.
- Classification of the land of the Unified aravalli.
- Rehabilitation of degraded areas.
- Planning which appreciates natural boundaries in urban planning.
- Locally-managed conservation projects.
- Insurance is less expensive than repair.
What Citizens, Students and Professionals can do
The issue of environmental protection does not only apply to policymakers.
Citizens can:
- Challenge unlawful developments.
- Fund environmental conservation.
- Lessen city ecological footprints.
Students can:
- Environmental planning study.
- Record local ecological destruction.
- The crusader of green cities.
Professionals can:
- Incorporate risk on the environment into planning.
- Encourage the use of green infrastructure.
- Institutionalized push sustainability.
The worsening condition of the aravalli Hills is not only a threat to the environment; it is the direct indication of the shaky future of the fast-growing cities of India. Since these old mountain ranges lose their forest cover, natural slopes, and biodiversity, there is an increased exposure of urban regions to extreme climate conditions like flash floods, long heatwaves, and acute water shortage. Throughout centuries, the aravalli Hills were an ecological barrier of nature; they controlled the temperature, groundwater recharge, and prevented desert sands dispersion of western India.
This protective system is being eroded today by merciless mining, unlawful building and ill-thought-out urban development. Displacement of the green cover has increased the rate of air contamination, particularly in the Delhi-NCR, and interfered with local weather patterns. When it is not stopped in time, the damages will go well beyond environmental harm since the effect on the health of people, the financial security of a region and the overall habitation of some of the most significant cities in India will also be a significant concern.
The Aravalli Hills Are A Future Test to India
The aravalli Hills treatment will determine the way India will treat nature in the era of fast urbanisation.
This is not merely a matter of preserving hills -this is a matter of preserving cities, means of living and stability of climate.
Theft of the aravallis is a crisis over strategy.
Saving their lives is to act resiliently and not regretfully.
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Key Takeaways
- The disappearance of aravalli Hills causes a threat to the climate, water, and cities of India.
- The major causes of destruction are mining and unlawful construction.
- aravallis is important to control air pollution and recharge ground water.
- The pollution crisis in Delhi-NCR has a close relationship with the degradation of aravalli.
- It is necessary to enforce the policy and create awareness in the population.
