CHANDIGARH: Amid concerns over the recent 'redefinition' of the Aravalli, the oldest mountain range in the country and a fragile ecological shield for north India, now the Waterman of India and Ramon Magsaysay Awardee Rajendra Singh has written to the Chief Justice of India on it.

He warned that the new definition of the Aravalli could open protected areas to fresh mining and development and allow the Thar Desert to advance towards Delhi.

In the letter Rajendra Singh wrote, "There is no 100-meter hillock along the Delhi-Haryana border. Thus, I believe it may open all those protected areas of the Aravalli for new mining and development and facilitate bringing the Thar desert to Delhi. The Aravalli is not an object; it is an ecosystem of hills with gentle slopes."

"Winds, the monsoon, groundwater reserves, water harvesting systems, vegetation, forests, wildlife, and all forms of biodiversity together have shaped the Aravalli over millions of years," it added.

The letter noted that the geographical significance of the Aravalli is well known to all, and the Supreme Court has acknowledged this significance many times.

"Even before our origin, the Aravalli has played a role in the formation of the Himalayas, the seas, and the Sahyadri ranges around it. At a time when climate change is afflicting the masses, when the air has become so polluted that even breathing has become difficult, can we even imagine causing any kind of harm to the Aravalli? he asked, asserting that mining and development damaging the range must be rejected.