It is rare for the Supreme Court of India to stay the operationalisation of its own verdict. But rarer is the apex court staying its verdict within a month. And it happened recently. What was the matter? What made the Supreme Court make an about-turn, and that too so soon? The aforesaid are the subject matter of this edition of the piece “Akhil Vaani". And I must begin with the historical verdict.

The Verdict

On 29 December 2025, hearing the suo motu writ petition (civil) No. (s) 10/2025, a vacation bench of the Supreme Court of India comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice J. K. Maheshwari and Justice Augustine George Masih gave the following verdict: “…. to subserve the ends of complete justice and in the broader public interest, we deem it necessary to direct that the recommendations submitted by the Committee, together with the findings and directions stipulated by this Court in its judgment dated 20.11.2025, be kept in abeyance. This stay shall remain in effect until the present proceedings reach a state of logical finality, ensuring that no irreversible administrative or ecological actions are taken based on the current framework….

…We further find it necessary, as a matter of abundant caution, to direct unequivocally, as set out in the order dated 09.05.2024, that until further orders, no permission shall be granted for mining, whether it is for new mining leases or renewal of old mining leases, in the ‘Aravalli Hills and Ranges’ as defined in the FSI Report dated 25.08.2010 without prior permission from this Court."

But what is the matter all about? Here is the story in brief:

The Green Lungs

This is the story of the “Aravalli Hills and Range (Aravallis)", frequently characterised as the ‘green lungs’ of north-western India and which for centuries have sustained diverse ecosystems and underpinned the livelihoods of numerous communities. The Aravallis serve as the indispensable ecological and socioeconomic backbone of the region, functioning as the primary geographical barrier separating the arid north-western desert from the fertile northern plains.

Owing to its ancient geological formation, the Aravallis host some of the nation’s most diverse flora and fauna and, importantly, its most significant mineral deposits.

Murder In Daylight

Notwithstanding its historical, ecological and environmental significance, the travesty of the Aravallis is that it has been subjected to unprecedented and escalating anthropogenic pressures.

But what defines anthropogenic pressure in the first place?

For the uninitiated, anthropogenic pressure refers to the significant negative impacts and stresses placed on the environment, ecosystems and natural resources directly resulting from human activities, such as urbanisation, pollution, industrialisation, habitat destruction (deforestation, land conversion), overexploitation (overfishing, logging, over-mining), and climate change, leading to biodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation and altered hydrological cycles.

These pressures fundamentally disrupt natural processes and threaten sustainability, requiring careful management for conservation.

Revisiting Aravallis

Colloquially christened the “green lungs" of north-western Bharat, the Aravalli Range is one of the world’s oldest fold mountain systems. Here is the story in brief.

One, Geological Age — Dating back to the Precambrian era, with estimates ranging from 2.5 to over 3.2 billion years old, formed from ancient rocks like granite, gneiss and schist, the Aravalli Range is one of the world’s........

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