EPG seeks Rs 10 crore budgetary allocation for protection and development of Guryul Ravine Geo-Heritage Site, Khunmoh

Srinagar, Jan 27: The Environmental Policy Group (EPG) has demanded a dedicated budgetary allocation of ₹10 crore in the Jammu and Kashmir Budget 2026–27 for the protection, conservation and scientific development of the Guryul Ravine Permian–Triassic (PTB) Section at Khunmoh, Srinagar, a site of exceptional global geological importance.

The Guryul Ravine in Kashmir preserves the world’s clearest geological record of the Permian–Triassic Mass Extinction, also known as the “Great Dying”, which occurred around 252 million years ago and remains the largest extinction event in Earth’s history. During this period, over 75 percent of terrestrial flora and nearly 95 percent of marine species were wiped out. The site is also globally renowned for preserving evidence of the world’s first known tsunami.

The demand comes in the wake of the official declaration of the Guryul Ravine PTB Section as a Geo-Heritage Site of National Importance by the Geological Survey of India (GSI), Ministry of Mines, Government of India. The declaration was made on 16 October 2025 by the Director General, GSI, on the occasion of the 4th UNESCO International Geodiversity Day and the 9th International Geoethics Day. With this notification, the Guryul Ravine has become the 33rd National Geological Monument of India.

Along with Guryul Ravine, three other sites of international geological significance in Jammu and Kashmir—Barus, Mandakpal and Pastun (Tral)—were also declared Geo-Heritage Sites of National Importance vide DG-GSI order No. GH&CD/Geoheritage Site/J&K/2025 dated 16 October 2025.

EPG stated that the Guryul Ravine holds far greater scientific value than many globally celebrated sites. The exposed stratigraphic section at Khunmoh measures nearly three metres in thickness, making it significantly more comprehensive than the famous Meishan Section in China, which spans barely 27 centimetres. Despite this, China earns billions of dollars annually from tourism and research linked to the Meishan site, while the Guryul Ravine continues to suffer from neglect and degradation.

The group expressed serious concern over decades of illegal mining and continued degradation of adjoining sites such as Mandakpal, which has led to irreversible damage and destruction of invaluable geological evidence. It recalled that international geoscientists had raised the issue with the Prime Minister’s Office as early as 2009, following which directives were issued to stop mining. However, mining activities continued until 2017, when sustained protests by EPG, experts and local activists forced a halt. By then, significant portions of the geological record had already been destroyed and converted into construction material.

EPG has also raised alarm over recent activities involving the use of heavy machinery, mountain cutting and the construction of large industrial infrastructure near the Guryul Ravine. The group warned that any move to establish an industrial estate in and around the site would irreversibly jeopardise this one-of-a-kind geological archive. It cautioned policymakers to draw lessons from Supreme Court interventions in cases involving the destruction of the Aravalli Hills, stressing that similar judicial scrutiny could arise if globally significant heritage sites are compromised.

The Environmental Policy Group highlighted that it has been advocating the protection and development of the Guryul Ravine for nearly two decades. These efforts resulted in the transfer of 32 kanals of land to the site by the district administration, partial fencing by the Department of Tourism, and further extension of protective measures under the Smart City Project. However, EPG maintained that these steps are grossly inadequate in the absence of a comprehensive conservation, research and interpretation plan backed by sufficient financial resources.

Calling the declaration by GSI a “golden opportunity”, EPG urged the government to immediately allocate ₹10 crore for scientific conservation works, site protection, interpretation infrastructure, access improvement, visitor management, research facilities and preparation of the site for nomination as a UNESCO Global Geopark. The group emphasised that the Khunmoh Section has all the attributes required for UNESCO Global Geopark status due to its unmatched scientific value on a global scale.

EPG asserted that the Guryul Ravine is not meant for mining or industrial activity. Once properly developed, the site can emerge as a global hub for geological research and education, while also attracting large numbers of domestic and international tourists. This, the group said, would generate employment, foreign exchange and sustainable economic benefits for local communities and the region as a whole.

“The fossil park at Khunmoh is a one-in-a-million historic site with no parallel anywhere on the globe. Destroying it in the name of development would be a historic blunder. Preserving it will secure Jammu and Kashmir a permanent place on the world map of geoheritage,” EPG said.

The Environmental Policy Group appealed to the government to immediately stop further vandalisation of the site, declare the area a no-mining and no-industry zone, and prioritise conservation over short-term industrial expansion. “Keep priorities right. Protect the Guryul Ravine. It will repay the region many times over through science, tourism and global recognition,” the group added.