'Those set out to destroy now posing as saviours': Cong on Yadav's 'Aravallis restored' remarks

New Delhi, Jan 15 (PTI) A day after Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said that thousands of hectares in the Aravalli region have been restored in the last two to three years, the Congress on Thursday took a swipe at the Modi government and said those who set out to destroy are now managing the optics and posing as saviours.

Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, said the Modi government tried its best to get the Aravallis redefined in a way that would have resulted in further devastation of the sensitive ecosystem.

“Fortunately, the Supreme Court intervened and thwarted these attempts (at least for now),” he said in a post on X.

Yadav, the Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, had aggressively defended the redefinition and had initiated actions to put it into effect, Ramesh claimed.

“Overnight, he was forced to change his stance and tried to proclaim victory in the face of defeat. Now, he is declaring the Modi government’s intent to launch eco-restoration projects in the Aravallis,” the Congress leader said.

“Those who set out to destroy are now managing the optics and posing as saviours," Ramesh said.

The remarks followed after Yadav on Wednesday said, “The government is committed to the restoration and conservation of the Aravallis and similar ecosystems across the country.

“Thousands of hectares in the Aravalli region have been restored in the last two to three years, and the government remains committed to continuing this work with ecology at the centre of development.” The minister made the comments in his inaugural address at the ‘National Conference on Eco-restoration of the Aravalli Landscape: Strengthening the Aravalli Green Wall’ here.

Yadav said the government launched the Aravalli Green Wall Project as part of India's commitment under the UNCCD to restore 26 million hectares of degraded land by 2030.

“Under this initiative, 6.45 million hectares of degraded land in the Aravalli region have been identified, with greening work initiated over 2.7 million hectares across Gujarat, Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan.

“Divisional forest officers from 29 Aravalli districts are implementing the project, focusing on plantations of native species suited to arid and semi-arid conditions,” the minister said.

Yadav’s comments came months after a controversy was triggered when the environment ministry recommended a change in the definition of the Aravalli hills and ranges to protect the world's oldest mountain system in October last year.

The Supreme Court accepted the recommendations in November but kept the order in abeyance on December 29, 2025. PTI ASK ARI