The Supreme Court-appointed high-powered committee examining the definition, ecological integrity and conservation of the Aravalli Hills and Ranges will visit southern Rajasthan from October 11 to 13, with field inspections and stakeholder consultations scheduled in Dungarpur, Banswara and Udaipur.
The committee, headed by the director general of the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education, will begin its Rajasthan visit at Paldewal-Sarkan in Dungarpur on October 11. It will travel to Kewadiya-Kothara in Banswara on October 12 before reaching Udaipur on October 13 and departing from Udaipur Airport, according to an order issued by Rajasthan’s mines and petroleum department.
The visit places local mining and ecological concerns within a wider exercise ordered by the Supreme Court. The committee is examining questions concerning how the Aravalli Hills and Ranges should be defined, as well as issues related to their ecological integrity and conservation. The definition of the range has implications for identifying areas requiring protection and for the administration of activities in and around the hills.
Stakeholder consultations are planned in Dungarpur and Banswara. A public consultation will be held at the Tribal Area Development auditorium in Banswara on October 12. Citizens, elected representatives, Panchayati Raj institutions, industry and trade organisations, mineral leaseholders, environmentalists, academics, subject experts and voluntary organisations have been invited to submit their views.
The Banswara notice said the suggestions and views received during the consultation would be examined by the high-powered committee and considered for inclusion in its recommendations. The format brings together groups with different interests in the region, including local institutions, mining-linked businesses, residents and organisations focused on environmental protection.
The mines and geology department has directed its officers to coordinate the visit and remain present with relevant records. The nominated officials include additional director (Geology) S N Dodiya, superintendent mining engineer S P Sharma, mining engineers Ghanshyam Chouhan, Suresh Chand Agrawal and Asif Mohammad Ansari, senior geologists Devendra Singh and Amit Dabi, and superintendent geologist H S Nathawat.
The committee’s members, special invitees and supporting officers, numbering around 10 to 12, are scheduled to arrive in Ahmedabad on October 7 before beginning field visits in Gujarat and subsequently travelling to Rajasthan. The field exercise will conclude in Rajasthan with the committee’s scheduled departure from Udaipur Airport on October 13.
