Aravalli Balding: SC Flays Rajasthan For Complicity In Illegal Mining; Furious At Its ‘We-Were-Stuck-With-Polls’ Excuse 

Coming down heavily on the Rajasthan government, a Supreme Court bench led by Justice Arun Mishra yesterday (4 February 2019) noted how the state’s authorities were in cahoots with those involved in illegal mining in the Aravalli region, reports The Hindu.

The observation came when the state’s counsel told the court that the ground-truthing exercise to determine the places where illegal mining had allegedly been going on was still unfinished because of the just-concluded assembly polls and the Lok Sabha polls this year.

“What are you saying? As elections are there, so illegal mining will go on till then? What is this? You do not want to do this because this suits you. The entire machinery is rotten,” the bench responded.

The court also observed how the Aravalli region has been left devastated due to illegal mining over the years. “You are hand-in-glove and your officers are hand-in-glove with them (illegal miners). The entire Aravalli area is devastated and the entire flora and fauna there has gone,” the apex court stated.

The bench recalled how the state’s authorities had previously promised to conclude the exercise within three months from 29 October. Now, the Chief Secretary has been summoned to offer an explanation to the court.

“We want compliance of our order. We want only compliance,” the bench said.

In October, the Supreme Court conveyed its shock over the disappearance of 31 hills and hillocks in the Aravalli region and had directed the state government to halt illegal mining in an area of about 115.34 hectares.