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RAS question

With reference to the Aravalli hills, consider the following statements: 1. The Aravalli range is approximately 800 km long, spanning Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi, and Gujarat. 2. It is estimated to be among the world's oldest mountain ranges, approximately 1,500 million years old. 3. The Supreme Court's November 2025 judgment defined Aravalli hills as landforms with a minimum elevation of 100 metres. 4. Under this definition, more than 50% of documented Aravalli hills qualified for protection. Which of the above statements are correct?

Correct answer: (A) 1, 2 and 3 only.

For the Aravalli hills, statements 1, 2 and 3 are correct: the range is about 800 km long across Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and Gujarat, is about 1,500 million years old, and was covered by the Supreme Court's November 2025 100-metre definition, while statement 4 is wrong.

  1. (A)

    1, 2 and 3 only

  2. (B)

    1 and 2 only

  3. (C)

    2, 3 and 4 only

  4. (D)

    1, 2, 3 and 4

Explanation

Statements 1, 2 and 3 are correct, so option A is the answer. The question tests both the standard physical-geography facts on the Aravalli range and the recent legal benchmark used for its protection. The range is described here as about 800 km long across Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and Gujarat, and as among the world's oldest mountain ranges at about 1,500 million years old. The Supreme Court's November 2025 order accepted a definition under which a landform at an elevation of 100 metres or more above the local relief would be treated as part of the Aravalli Hills, along with its slopes and adjacent land. Statement 4 fails because only 1,048 of 12,081 documented Aravalli hills, about 8.7%, met that 100-metre threshold, not more than 50%.

Why the other options are wrong

  • (B) Option B leaves out statement 3, although the November 2025 Supreme Court definition did use a 100-metre elevation threshold for identifying Aravalli hills.
  • (C) Option C includes statement 4, but the cited count was only 1,048 of 12,081 hills, about 8.7%, qualifying under the 100-metre criterion, not more than 50%.
  • (D) Option D treats all four statements as correct, but statement 4 overstates the protection coverage created by the 100-metre definition.

Concept

This tests Rajasthan physical geography through the Aravalli range and links it with environmental regulation, a recurring RAS theme because landforms, mining controls and ecological protection often overlap in Rajasthan questions.

Source

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