The Supreme Court has set up a five-member High-Powered Committee to formulate a uniform definition and demarcation of the ecologically sensitive Aravalli Hills and Range for regulating future mining activities. A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice Vipul M Pancholi directed the committee to submit a conservation report by August 31. Constituting the expert committee, the bench observed that matters affecting ecological conservation and sustainable development cannot be resolved without informed expert evaluation, and entrusted the committee with reassessing the existing framework relating to the Aravallis. It said that any future action must be based on scientific assessment and aligned with the principles of environmental protection and sustainable development. The committee will be headed by Kanchan Devi, Director General of the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education, as per a May 25 order, which was made online on Tuesday. The apex court noted that expert evaluation was required to examine concerns that the current definition of the Aravalli Range–limited to land within 500 metres between two or …