Centre rejects claims of diluting Aravalli protections, says 90% of range will remain safeguarded
New Delhi: Union Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Minister Bhupendra Yadav refuted claims that the Centre had weakened safeguards for the Aravalli hills, saying that the government is still steadfast in its commitment to protecting the delicate ecosystem and that almost 90% of the Aravalli landscape will remain protected.
Responding to growing criticism over a revised definition of the Aravalli range, Yadav said on Sunday misinformation was being spread about the changes, as reported by Hindustan Times. He clarified that the Aravalli system extends across four states- Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat and has been under judicial scrutiny for decades, with a related petition pending before the courts since 1985.
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Addressing concerns around the “100-metre” criterion, the minister said it was being widely misunderstood. He explained that the figure does not refer to the top 100 metres of a hill, but to the entire vertical spread of the hill from top to bottom. He added that gaps between two hill ranges would also be treated as part of the Aravalli system. With this interpretation, he said, nearly 90 per cent of the region would fall within the protected zone.
Yadav emphasised that mining activities would remain under strict regulation. He said the total Aravalli area spans around 1.47 lakh square kilometres, of which only about 217 square kilometres, roughly two per cent, has been identified as eligible for mining. Even within this limited area, he noted, the Supreme Court has directed that a sustainable mining management plan be prepared, following which clearance from the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education would be mandatory before any activity could begin.
The minister further underlined that mining is entirely prohibited in the Delhi portion of the Aravallis and that all existing protected areas and forest reserves in the capital would remain unchanged. He also referred to the Centre’s Green Aravalli programme, which has been underway for the past two years, and said the government was being portrayed unfairly through what he described as a false narrative.
Opposition parties like the Congress and the Samajwadi Party expressed concern over the potential ecological impact of the revised definition. Critics have warned that any kind of weakened protection could have long-term consequences for biodiversity, air quality and climate resilience in north India.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, in a post on X, linked the survival of the Aravalli range directly to the future of Delhi and the National Capital Region, calling the hills a natural shield against pollution and environmental degradation. He warned that continued damage to the range would worsen air quality, biodiversity loss and extreme temperatures, with severe consequences for public health, particularly for children, the elderly and the sick.
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Delhi HC protects actor R Madhavan's personality rights, orders takedown of objectionable content
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi High Court on Monday protected the personality rights of Bollywood actor R Madhavan by restraining several websites and online platforms from illegally using his name or images for commercial gain without his consent.
The high court also restrained several defendants from using the personality traits of Madhavan through the use of artificial intelligence and deepfake technology and ordered the takedown of certain obscene content uploaded on the Internet. Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora said she will pass a detailed interim order in the matter.
"Issue injunction qua sale of merchandise qua defendants 1, 3 and 4 of the list and qua defendant 2 on the ground of obscenity," the court said.
Senior advocate Swathi Sukumar, representing the actor, contended that one of the defendants has created a fake movie trailer of Kesari 3 which says this movie is about to come and posted deepfake and AI-generated content in the capacity of Madhavan.
She said the actor had already approached the social media platforms against the infringing material before filing the suit.
This was submitted before the court as the judge recently took a view that individuals seeking urgent takedown of objectionable online content must first approach the social media platforms before directly seeking a judicial injunction.
The court was hearing a plea by Madhavan seeking to protect his personality rights and restrain online platforms from illegally using his name, images and AI-generated inappropriate and sexually explicit content.
The suit relates to misappropriation of various aspects of Madhavan's personality, including his name, image, likeness, persona and voice by the defendants for their commercial gains, without consent.
The right to publicity, popularly known as personality rights, is the right to protect, control and profit from one's image, name or likeness.
Besides Madhavan, the court also heard similar personality rights suits filed by Telugu actor NTR Junior and Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, and said it would pass detailed interim orders.
Recently, Bollywood actors Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, her husband Abhishek Bachchan and her mother-in-law Jaya Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan and Ajay Devgn, filmmaker Karan Johar, singer Kumar Sanu, Telugu actor Akkineni Nagarjuna, 'Art of Living' founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, journalist Sudhir Chaudhary and podcaster Raj Shamani also approached the high court seeking protection of their personality and publicity rights. The court granted them interim relief.
Bollywood actor Salman Khan and former cricketer Sunil Gavaskar have also approached the Delhi High Court seeking protection of their personality rights.
