Gurugram: ‘Ground-truthing’ begins in Aravallis to revive lost areas

Gurugram, February 20

As part of its recently announced Aravalli revival plan, the state government has started the “ground-truthing” exercise in the Aravallis spread across seven districts in state.

To be done in 7 mining-hit districts

The authorities will carry out an on-ground analysis using physical visits and drones to asses and record the extent of damage caused by mining in the Aravallis and revive the affected areas. The survey will be done in Gurugram, Nuh, Faridabad, Rewari, Mahendragarh, Charkhi Dadri and Bhiwani

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The authorities concerned will be carrying out an on-ground analysis using physical visits and drones to asses and record the extent of damage caused by mining in the Aravallis and revive the affected areas. The survey will be carried out in Gurugram, Nuh, Faridabad, Rewari, Mahendragarh, Charkhi Dadri and Bhiwani. Government teams will use drones to map the areas hit by mining and those that are vulnerable to it, and prepare reports on land ownership, the extent of flora and fauna, solid waste dumping and encroachments which are posing a threat to the ecosystem and hampering its revival.

“The first step is the revival of the lost protected forest. Our teams have been visiting every site that needs to be restored. After the field work is done, we can prepare plans for specific areas, depending on the kind of problem there. Each area will have its own problem,” said P Raghavendra, Chairperson, Haryana State Pollution Control Board.

The government is acting on the NGT directive to utilise funds collected from environment compensation. The Haryana Government, in its submission to the green tribunal on July 17 last year, said it had formed the Aravalli Rejuvenation Board to deal with the complaints of illegal mining. The govt also said steps were being taken to deploy drones and install CCTV cameras for better surveillance. Officials concerned said the areas identified as wetlands would be recharged if these were found silted. Grasslands could also be developed around these areas.

Some of these stretches will also benefit from a 10-year compensatory afforestation plan for trees that were felled in the Andaman and Nicobar islands. A majority of these areas have already been notified as protected forests, which would be protected under the Indian Forest Act and Forest Conservation Act. The survey will also involve mapping of private areas. The restoration plan, however, is a long one, spanning two decades.

There has been a blanket ban on mining in the hills of Gurugram, Faridabad and Nuh following a Supreme Court order of 2009. The lack of enforcement, however, has allowed illegal quarrying of stones, the bulk of which are used for real estate. The issue hit national headlines when a DSP was murdred by mining mafia in Nuh in 2022.