Saving the Aravallis: Political and bureaucratic buy-in is critical

It is worth noting that the bulk of the degradation of the Aravallis is the result of plain illegal activities, costing state governments crores of rupees in revenue

Given the scale of destruction of the Aravallis, one of India’s oldest mountain ranges, the launch of the Aravalli Green Wall project on June 5, World Environment Day, has not come a day too soon. Inspired by Africa’s Great Green Wall project to regreen the Sahel, the Indian version aims to reforest 700 km of the range in 29 districts in Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Gujarat. The broad plan is to supplant destructive alien species with native species on scrubland, wasteland and degraded forest and restore water bodies to create an additional 2.5 billion tonnes of carbon sink, as India