The Supreme Court on Thursday put on hold the Aravalli Jungle Safari project being undertaken by the Haryana government in Gurugram, saying that it cannot proceed until there was a clear definition of the Aravalli Hills, the Hindustan Times reported.
The 700-km Aravalli mountain range stretches diagonally from southwest Gujarat, through Rajasthan, to Delhi and Haryana. Its highest point is Guru Shikhar in Mount Abu, which rises to an elevation of 1,722 metres.
The project, also called the Aravalli Zoo or the Aravalli Safari Park, was conceptualised by the Haryana government in 2021-’22 in the Aravalli foothills spanning Gurugram and Nuh. The project will be among the world’s largest safari parks once completed.
Under the Union government’s new Aravalli Hills definition that had been accepted by the Supreme Court in November, an Aravalli hill is any landform that rises at least 100 metres above the surrounding terrain. An Aravalli range is formed by two or more such hills located within 500 metres of each other, including the land between them.
Environmentalists have warned that defining the Aravallis solely by their height could leave many lower, scrub-covered but ecologically important hills vulnerable to mining and construction. Experts say these smaller hills are crucial for preventing desertification, recharging groundwater and supporting local livelihoods.
In December, the court had taken suo moto cognisance of the matter amid the concerns. A case pertaining to the new definition is pending before the Supreme Court.
On Thursday, a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi said that “not a single inch of land” in the ecologically sensitive Aravalli range will be permitted to be used for any purpose until experts comprehensively examine all aspects of the matter, the Hindustan Times reported.
The court was hearing a petition filed by five retired Indian Forest Service officers challenging the Jungle Safari project.
On Thursday, the bench observed that Aravalli is a composite range.
“It neither starts in Haryana nor ends in Haryana,” the Hindustan Times quoted the bench as saying. “There is no scope of permitting the project unless there is a clear definition on Aravalli.”
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