The controversy has further deepened following media reports highlighting discrepancies between the Centre’s claims and official documents. According to these reports Bhupendra Yadav recently stated that after the revised definition of the Aravalli range, only 277.9 square kilometres would be eligible for mining.

In sharp contrast, documents linked to the Central Empowered Committee’s (CEC) 2024 report present a different picture. A note attached to the CEC report states that the existing mining area in the Aravalli hills of Rajasthan alone stands at 2,339 square kilometres, a fact recorded in paragraph B of the report.

The same document refers to the Rajasthan government’s draft Vision Document–2047, which proposes expanding the mining area from 2,339 to 4,000 square kilometres to promote “responsible mining” and accelerate economic development.

Responding to the allegations, Bhupendra Yadav in a media interview said that misinformation was being spread about the Aravalli range. According to the union minister, a scientific management plan will first be prepared and evaluated by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), with sustainability as the key criterion for any future decisions.

Yadav further said that the Aravalli issue has been pending before the Supreme Court since the Congress government’s tenure, with illegal mining being the core concern. “The fact that illegal mining was taking place shows there was no uniform identification of the Aravallis at the district level and no consensus on what constituted the Aravallis,” he said.

As the two sides remain unbending, resolving the Aravalli row seems quite elusive.