MARBLE INDUSTRY OF RAJASTHAN

OVERVIEW (Marble Industr !

Marble is a crystalline, compact variety of metamorphosed limestone, consisting primarily of calcile (CaCO3), dolomite (CaMg (CO3)6) or a combination of both minerals. Dimensional stones such a marble has been highly popular since time immemorial, being used on facades and interiors of houses and buildings. he term marble is loosely applied to any limestone or dolomite that ta!es a good polish and is other"ise suitable as a building stone or ornamental stone. Marbles range in color from sno"#"hite to gray and blac!, many varieties being some shade of red, yello", pin!, green, or buff$ the colors, "hich are caused by the presence of impurities, are fre%uently arranged in bands or patches and add to the beauty of the stone "hen it is cut and polished. Marble is used as a material in statuary and monuments, as a facing stone in buildings and residences, and for pillars, colonnades, and paneling, "ainscoting, and floor tiles. &i!e all limestone's, it is corroded by "ater and acid fumes and is thus ultimately an uneconomical material for use in e(posed places and in large cities. he presence of certain impurities decreases its durability. Marble "as e(tensively used by the ancient )ree!s$ the *arthenon and other famous buildings "ere constructed of "hite *entelic marble from Mt. *entelicus in +ttica, and the finest statues, e.g., the ,enus de- Medici, from the remar!ably lustrous *arian marble from *aros in the Cyclades. hese same %uarries "ere later used by the .omans. +mong the famous marbles of /taly are the Carrara and 0iena marbles of uscany, "hich "ere used by the .omans and the /talian sculptors of the .enaissance. Marbles are %uarried in all parts of the "orld. he finest marbles in the 1nited 0tates come from ,ermont, "hich produces large %uantities. Other states important as marble producers are Massachusetts, Maryland, ennessee, +labama, )eorgia, Missouri, California, Colorado, and +ri2ona.

M+.3&4 *.OD1C /O5 6 .4)1&+ /O5

he production of marble passes through several stages. he main stages are demonstrated in 7igure8. he first stage of production is (8) e(ploration and identification of a %uarry location, follo"ed by (9) e(traction of marble from the %uarries,

then (3) lifting and transportation, (:) inventory management, (;) cutting the stone into slabs and tiles, (6) polishing, and finally, (<) distribution to end users.

FI"URE#$ %r&du't(&n ) Re*ulat(&n &+ ,arble

C=+.+C 4./0 /C0 O7 =4 M+.3&4 /5D10 .>? COM*4 / /,4 +5+&>0/0

The Marble Industry has unique competitive characteristics that differentiate it from any other industry in terms of technology use and operational characteristics, in addition to its differentiated market characteristics. This industry deals with a natural stone that is appreciated worldwide and has such a high level of product differentiation inside the same country as well as from one country to the other. In this industry, what differentiates the raw material from the final product is the cutting and polishing that is exercised on the

raw material which refines it into a final product. India enjoys abundance and high quality of the raw material, yet the production process in India has still a way to go to reach the advanced levels enjoyed by the top producing countries. evertheless, the marble industry in India is growing from one day to the other and it is very valuable studying and analy!ing the market characteristics of this industry in India. In this market, we have varying types of competition" quantity #capacity$ competition exists where the suppliers that can provide big quantities and can operate their own quarries have a clear edge over others. %owever, there is also a tough price competition. &mall suppliers sometimes dump the market by lowering their prices severely, just for the sake of selling their product and generating cash. Therefore, bigger marble producers on scale do not always enjoy a '( price advantage even though their average operating cost may be lower. )lso, market competition is highly differentiated by quality #vertical differentiation$. This depends on target demand and whether the end user is local or production is done for export purposes. In addition, hori!ontal differentiation also exists #according to type and color of marble produced$. *sually, hori!ontally differentiated competition is for suppliers who target the elite market.

There is hardly any seasonality of demand. Marble is required all year long, although it follows very much the business cycle of the construction sector. If the construction sector witnesses a boom, the marble industry is always expected to follow and vice versa. Moreover, demand is usually higher in summer, as construction work is more intense in summer than in winter, for several reasons among which are that days are longer and the weather is more predictable.

WORLD S-ENARIO OF MARBLE INDUSTRY

@orld"ide, marble has a trade of A:; billion. Despite having one of the biggest marble reserves in +sia, *a!istan has a share of one percent in the "orld mar!et. *a!istan earns about A9B to 3B million from marble, ony( and granite and their products e(port to the 1nited 0tates, China, 4urope, Middle 4ast /taly, 1C and )ermany. he government has set marble and granite e(port target to A;BB million by 9B83, after establishment of model %uarries and Marble Cities initiated by *a!istan 0tone Development Company (*+0D4C).

Marble is an e(port oriented item. During 9BB<#BD, the country earned around A3; million from the marble and its products e(port, "hile in 9BB6#B<, it "as A99 million. he 0mall and Medium 4nterprise Development +uthority (0meda), is ta!ing !een interest in the development of this industry. /n addition, 0meda has planned to set up a modern technical training institution to provide assistance in establishment of marble industry and trained its "or!ers. his "ould not only ensure availability of s!illed local labour for the industry in re%uired numbers, but also help it to compete "ith the marble products in international mar!et. @orld"ide natural stone e(traction is estimated at 88;B million ton per year. +nnual production after deduction of "aste and cutting losses amounted to about D9B million, referred to a slab thic!ness of 9 cm. he total production value "as estimated at A:B billion.

he global gro"th too! place outside 4urope. China no" e(tracts around t"ice as much natural stone as the previous mar!et leader /taly. /ndia also overtoo! /taly last year for the first time. he most important "orld importer of finished goods is the 10+. 0tone products "orth A8.<9 billion "ere imported in 9BB3, 8D.3 percent more than a year ago. he most important supplier "as /taly, "hich increased its 10 e(ports by <.9 percent to A;3; million "ithin t"o years. /ndia-s contribution to the "orld stone mar!et "as 8B percent and it produces 9< percent of the "orld-s stone. he annual gro"th "as about 8; percent and it is no" the third largest natural stone producer in the "orld, after /taly and China, and plays an important role in "orld trade of natural stones. China has become the important player of "orld mar!ets in marble and granite tiles especially in gray, pin! and other light colors. /ts fast increasing presence has sharply accelerated the trend of lo"er prices. China e(ported natural stones and its products for more than a billion dollar last year. he natural stone e(ports increased by almost 9B percent from E9: million dollars to over 8.8 billion dollars in 9BB3. /talian natural stone e(ports have increased by ;.6 percent in %uantity and 9.< percent in value terms in the first half of 9BB:. he total e(port %uantity of marble, granite and other processed solid stones reached 8.;3 million ton in the first si( months of 9BB:, compared "ith 8.:; million ton in the first half of 9BB3. he e(port value rose from <E9 million euros to D83.8 million euros. he gro"th "as attributed mainly to more e(ports of granite and granite products. During the last ; years production of marble "as as follo"s?

echnical advancement in the last seventy years had increased the "orld production and consumption of dimensional stones to :E.; million tons. Due to increase in "orld consumption the granite and marble trade reached 10A 3.; billion mar! in 9BBD. /taly is the maFor player in the global mar!et and e(ported 3D percent of the dimensional stone-s e(port, "hile its imports "ere 8D percent of the international imports. Other maFor e(porters include 0pain, ur!ey and *ortugal. Other maFor importers "ere 10+, China, )ermany and =ong Cong.

/ndia has been the main e(porter of granite and sandstone for the five years. /ts e(ports have declined by :6 percent in five years but it managed to capture 8;.9 percent of the granite trade in 9BBD. 5or"ay has a share of 89.: percent and /taly captured E.8G of the mar!et. /taly has been the largest importer of granite and sandstone for the last five years and accounted for 3E.:G of the total imports "ith a value of 10A :8; million in 9BBD. During the E months of 9BBD#BE e(port of marble and granite from *a!istan increased by 8D.B< percent. =o"ever, in 9BBD granite accounted for 10A D; thousand in foreign e(change earnings, "hich "as appro(imately B.B8 percent of global granite e(ports. @hile the share "as B.B3 percent in 9BB:, e(ports "ere 10A 9BD thousand.

Marble and granite processing industry is typical in nature, its efficiency is dependent on the %uarry products. /n most of the above countries processing is done on highly sophisticated machinery for %uality production. /n *a!istan "here fe" units are using these machines "hile rest of the industry uses locally fabricated machinery by fe" e(isting manufacturers in the country. hese units develop machinery by reserve engineering (copying of foreign machines), "ithout even doing the basics of machinery designing. /talian processing industry is far ahead of the "orld "ith locally manufactured machinery of high standards. Many countries have entered into collaboration arrangements "ith /taly and other leading stone machinery manufacturers in )ermany, 10+ and 5etherlands. Marble and )ranite is the si(th largest mineral e(tracted among coal, roc! salt, lime stone, china clay, dolomite, fire clay, gypsum, silica sand etc. 0ince 8EEB, mining 6 %uarrying has consistently contributed B.; percent to the )ross Domestic *roduct. /n *a!istan marble is processed in more than 8,6BB units in the country including 6D; small and medium si2e units. hese units have been defined in three categories according

to their si2es, small, medium and comparatively large, but not up to the international level. 1nfortunately the processing strength for granite in the country remains unsatisfactory. here are only nine units, of "hich four are operational. +ll of these units have an average investment of over .s.9B million "ith gang sa"s, bloc! cutters and polishing heads. Due to hardness of granite, production capacity of granite processing units is lo" as compared to marble. +verage production of these units is 6,BBB to D,BBB s%Hft per month per unit. Most of the units even those "ith good %uality machinery setups are unable to produce high %uality products because of substandard ra" materials and lo" s!ill level of the "or!ers. /nternational buyers allo" variation of B.;mm for tiles and 8.Bmm for slabs. *revailing industry average variations are too high and do not match to the international standards. 0eeing vast opportunities in these sector /talian businessmen have started loo!ing to"ards *a!istan for the e(ploitation of its marble and granite reserves to !eep their marble industry alive as after about 9; years the /talian reserves of this mineral "ealth "ould e(haust.

/taly is pioneer in introducing mining technology by e(tensive research and development$ mining is carried out on modern lines in most of the countries e(cept for a fe" developing countries, including *a!istan. 0tandard %uarry "astage in the "orld is ta!en at ;B percent of the gross produce$ ho"ever, in *a!istan this %uarry loss is estimated 68 percent to <3 percent. /taly had 9,;BB years history of marble industry, and had been a leading nation in the dimensional stone business for centuries it has a long base of model mines "ith the highest global average for %uarry production and state#of#the art processing industry. /taly is the leading manufactures of stone products, materials and technology, "hile *a!istan is one of the fe" countries endo"ed by nature "ith large reserves of marble, ony( and granite. herefore, its industry can be benefited from /taly's e(perience. /n *a!istan only a fe" unit are e%uipped "ith proper e%uipments and produce %uality marble and marble products. )enerally *a!istani finished goods are of poor %uality. *rocessing "astage of :; percent to ;; percent has been estimated. he primitive mining techni%ues e(isting in *a!istan do not allo" e(traction of standard bloc!s$ a maFor factor for the decline in *a!istan-s marble industry are slo"do"n in the construction industry, lac! of %uality production and an inconsistent and irregular supply of ra" material. he e(traction in *a!istan comprised boring of holes in the bedroc!, "hich "ere filled "ith e(plosives to blast the bloc!, "hich results not only in a high "astage (up to <3 percent), but also in smaller stone si2e, "hich substantially reduces the price, "hich is directly proportional to si2e. he e(traction of marble in *a!istan "as yet to be developed and value#addition to all marble products can be done "ith the help of modern machinery from /taly. /t is considered that *a!istan is the right place for foreign investment, in mining as "ell as the training of manpo"er involved in the marble sector and /talian businessmen can avail this opportunity.

INDIA.S S-ENARIO OF MARBLE INDUSTRY *roducts

/ndia possesses a "ide spectrum of stones I granite, marble, sandstone, limestone, slate, and %uart2ite. /t is amongst the largest producer of ra" stone material.

*roduction areas
Marble deposits are "idespread in /ndia? concentration in states of .aFasthan, )uFarat, Madhya *radesh, =aryana, and +ndhra *radesh. 5e(t )uFarat also produces some very fine marble follo"ed by Madhya *radesh. .aFasthan is the main depository of marble$ accounts for over EBG of total marble production in /ndia J88BB m tonsK. 5e"er varieties of marble are being developed in 3ihar, Lammu 6 Cashmir, Maharashtra, 0i!!im, and 1ttar *radesh 6 3engal.

*roduction echnology
/ndustry has evolved into the production and manufacturing of bloc!s, flooring slabs, structural slabs, calibrated # ready to fi( tiles, monuments, tomb stones, sculptures, artifacts, cobbles, cubes, pebbles and landscape garden stones.

+dvent of sophisticated mining machinery 6 ne" mining fields has led to increase in marble production. +lthough /ndia produces machinery, there is an e(cellent opportunity for e(porting machineries for "or!ing stone? cutting, sa"ing, grinding and polishing.

/ndo#/talian rade
/taly imports bloc!s and after cutting and processing e(ports these all over the "orld including /ndia. /taly imports large amounts of granite from /ndia around M 69 million as compared to imports of Marble "hich amount to only M ; million (inclusive of bloc!sHtilesHcrudeHtrimmed)K. he "hole "orld economy is facing the recessionary trend since past fe" years. his has affected most of the industries, but the commodities of necessity. +s marble is not an essential commodity, marble and related industries have faced a decrease in demand due to decreased purchasing po"er of consumers.

/mport statistics indicating opportunities for /talian companies? J7inished, trimmed, tilesHmonumental bloc!sK

Machinery for cutting, sa"ing, grinding and polishing

M+.3&4 3&OCC0 /M*O. /5 O /5D/+

/mport of .ough Marble Dimensional 3loc!s, marble slabs and tiles (other than cut and polished marble slabs and tiles) is allo"ed only by special licenses issued by the Director )eneral of 7oreign rade in /ndia. ill no", annual licenses are issued to those eligible to import marble bloc!s into /ndia. 7or the year 9BBD#9BBE, licenses totaling upto 8:B,BBB tons of rough marble bloc!s, slabs and tiles (=0 Classifications 9;8;88BB, 9;8;898B, 9;8;899B, and 9;8;89EB) "ill be issued to e(isting marble sa"ing and processing units in /ndia "ho have imported rough marble bloc!s and slabs in preceding years "hen licensing "as applicable. 1nits "ho "ere hitherto eligible to apply for licenses are those units that "ere importing marble bloc!s in period preceding the year from "hich restrictions came in force. Out of total licenses of 8:B,BBB tons, eligibility for each eligible license holder is normally "or!ed out on basis of turnover for the year 9BB<#BD i.e. the turnover of the eligible firms for the year 9BB6#B<, or the turnover of these firms for the year 9BB:#B; "ith a cap of 8BG, "hichever is less. he licenses are issued on actual user basis and the ma(imum entitlement is 8:,BBB tons for any single license holder.

here are certain points to bear in mind regarding these licenses?# 8. hese licenses are not applicable to 8BBG 4(port Oriented 1nits or 1nits in 0pecial 4conomic Nones that are eligible to import rough marble bloc!s and slabs for processing e(port orders directly or as deemed e(ports. 9. + passboo! is maintained for the imports and the importer has to file monthly returns "ith the licensing authorities to !eep record of the amount of imports and balance available. 3. /mport of Dolomite is banned against these licenses. herefore "hat is !no"n as hassos @hite Marble cannot be imported in rough bloc!s or slabs form other than by 8BBG e(port oriented units. 7or domestic consumption in /ndia, hassos @hite marble has to be imported in cut and polished form only. /n case an eligible importer fails to use his full entitlement he sells his license in the open mar!et. Currently the rate for these licenses is appro(imately .s.8B, BBB # .s.88, BBB per ton depending on the demand H availability. he floor price of imported marble (the minimum import price) should be not less than 10A39; per ton c6f for bloc!s and 10A;BB per ton c6f for slabs. Marble manufacturers associations have made a representation to the licensing authorities to revie" the licensing regime.

RAJASTHAN.S S-ENARIO OF MARBLE INDUSTRY

Marble industry of .aFasthan is an important industry generating .s. Rs$ /0//0#12 # t3&usand appro(imately$ =o"ever, it is mainly confined to .aFasthan "ith about E;G of national production segregated in the state. +s a result much importance has not been attached to the industry and very fe" futuristic studies have been made. 4ven in the much acclaimed O,ision 9B9B' by =onourable 0hri +.*.L. +bdul Calam there is no forecast about this industry. 0eeing to the importance of this industry in the state, the studies are mainly based on t"o factors, (i) On the basis of regression e%uation based on the past performances of marble industry. (ii) Correlation "ith other related industries, the futuristic trends of "hich have already been determined. /n addition to these important factors parameters li!e population gro"th, per capita income, globali2ation and open economy, )overnment policies, discovery marble deposits in other states, environmental aspects, and natural ha2ards etc have also been given due cogni2ance.

01**&> O7 M+.3&4
.aFasthan has been besto"ed "ith huge reserves of marble. 0o far there is no problem as such of shortage of supply of marble in the state. 4stimated reserves of the state are 88BB million tons, "hich are more than E8G of the total marble reserves of the country. he present hard times faced by the industry in the state are in fact a result of imbalance of demand and supply of marble in the mar!et. &ured by the high profit margins of the trade, several entrepreneurs have entered in the industry. @ith the advent of modern technology in the past fe" decades, the production of marble has increased li!e any thing. he cost of production has come do"n and the speed and %uality of production have improved a lot. Moreover, the reduction in "astage has also resulted in increased production. +ll this resulted in supply of huge surplus to the demand in the mar!et.

D4M+5D O7 M+.3&4
/t is a "ell !no"n fact that marble no" has become a thing of necessity, rather than a lu(ury. Marble has no" become the cheapest and the best option for the flooring of the building constructions besides the other uses. Demand of marble has gro"n steadily in the past fe" decades, although the supply of marble in mar!et is much more than the demand. Table #4 gives the year "ise production data of marble since 8E;B. F(*ure sho"s the chart on the basis of these figures. + trend line has been dra"n on the basis of these figures and its e%uation has been derived to "or! out the future figures. /n this chart the figure of 8E;B and 8E;; are not ta!en into consideration as at that time, the mining and processing activities "ere very crude and the demand of marble "as very limited so the figure derived "ith those data might give misleading results. +s is evident from the chart,
P

the industry is having an e(ponential gro"th rate. he impressive trend line sho"n in the graph is in fact a modest representation of the gro"th rate of the industry. /f "e dra" a trend line on the basis of production figures of last 8B years, the trend line "ould be much steeper. Table #45 Year67(se Nu,ber &+ Leases0 %r&du't(&n ) Re8enue &+ Marble (n Ra9ast3an (#:/4 T& ;444!$ S$N& Year N&$ &+ leases %r&du't(&n (n Re8enue (n .444 T&ne .444 ru<ees Marble = *reen >$L$ ,arble 8. 8E6B QQQ QQQ 8<.69B 88<.DDB 9. 8E6; QQQ QQQ 6.688 5H+. 3. 8E<B 86 QQQ 3B.3BB 5H+. :. 8E<; ;B QQQ ;6.:BB 5H+. ;. 8EDB 66 QQQ 63.:9B 6<E.6BB 6. 8ED; 986 QQQ 83E.BBB 89<.3BB <. 8EEB QQQ QQQ 968.EBB :E;;.8BB D. 8EE; QQQ QQQ <86.<BB 386E6.DBB E. 9BBB 3:<3 QQQ 8;8:.6BB 88<<E;.9B 8B. 9BB; 3<<; <ED 3B93.E6B 386<BB.BBB 88. 9B8B 39:3 D:B :9<D.63B ;;;8<<.;;8 +part from this change in the living styles and the preferences of common men are also instrumental in increasing the demand of marble in the past three decades.

7+C O.0 +774C /5) the D4M+5D 6 01**&> O7 M+.3&4

he studies indicate that the demand and supply of marble both have an increasing trend. 3ut at present the demand of marble is much belo" the supply. he reasons "hich affect the demand and supply of marble in the country are e(plained here? In'reased %r&du't(&n Due to advent of sophisticated mining machinery and development of ne" mining fields marble production has increased manifolds. he biggest role in this has been played by the invention of 7(re sa7 6 '3a(n sa7 for marble mining and d(a,&nd *an* sa7 for the processing. o bring do"n the cost per ton of production, most of the big mine o"ners follo"ed the principle of increasing the production. +s a result mar!ets "ere flooded "ith marble and there "ere fe" ta!ers. his is one of the most important reasons behind the present imbalance bet"een the demand and supply of marble in the mar!et. Moreover some ne" deposits of marble have been discovered. 4arlier in .aFasthan there "ere only t"o marble producing regions, i.e. Ma!arana and +mbaFi, but no" 9B districts of the state are producing marble. +s supply of marble !ept on increasing the prices "ere forced to come do"n. De'rease (n *r&7t3 rate &+ '&nstru't(&n a't(8(t(es$ here has been a global reduction in the gro"th rate of construction activities since last fe" years. Marble industry has its sole dependence on the construction industry. he production of marble has increased in the past fe" years (F(*ure) and the construction activities too have increased. he core of the problem is that rate of gro"th of marble production is having an increasing trend "hereas the gro"th rate of construction activities "orld over is having a declining trend. 0o the supply of marble is much more than "hat is re%uired. O8erall "l&bal Re'ess(&n Fa'ed b t3e W&rld E'&n&, he "hole "orld economy is facing the recessionary trend since past fe" years. his has affected most of the industries, but the commodities of necessity. +s marble is not an essential commodity, marble and related industries have faced a decrease in demand due to decreased purchasing po"er of consumers. his phenomena is not limited to /ndia but is evident the "orld over. 4(perts are of the opinion that the "orld economy is right no" going through the troughs of the trade cycles. Internat(&nal D(sturban'es MaFor disturbances in the "orld and especially in the /ndian subcontinent have attributed to decrease in e(ports of marble from /ndia. 7ollo"ing the gro"ing tensions "ith the neighbouring countries, /ndia has to give due cognisance to its militia and defence. 0teps ta!en by the )overnment of /ndia to prove its military strength have not been ta!en very

"ell by the developed nations of the "est. overall e(ports from the country.

his has imparted temporary effect on the

he 0eptember 88, 9BB8 attac!s on @orld rade Centre, in 5e"#>or! City have also impelled the authority's "orld over, to rethin! about the constructions of high rise buildings. 0ince then, there has been do"n fall in building construction activities in "estern countries. Ot3er Marble %r&du'(n* Nat(&ns his is yet another reason for decreased e(ports from /ndia. Other countries li!e China, /taly, )reece, 0pain etc. are not only producing good %uality of marble, but they have shelved their prices too, in the past fe" years. here is much hype in the trade circles that "ith the ingress of O)lobal +greement on rade and ariff' ()+ ) and R@orld rade Organisation' (@ O) the entry of the imported marble in the country "ill adversely affect the marble industry of the state. 3ut in fact the systems are going to help the marble industry of the state rather than harming it.

here are many reasons, "hich ensure that the imported marble can not compete "ith the /ndian varieties on the price front. 0o largest sector of /ndian buyers that is the middle class of the country "ill remain a safe mar!et for the /ndian producer. /n +merica largest numbers of anti dumping charges after China are against /ndian companies. 0o the "estern countries are more afraid of prices of our products than "e are of theirs.

hese systems "ill increase the mar!et of our mar!et. 4very one do agrees that marble varieties of .aFasthan are "orld class and some of them are uni%ue to .aFasthan only. Dimension stones being of natural occurrence are available at very fe" places in the "orld. +t many countries even if marble deposits are available these are not being mined either due to lac! of infrastructure facilities, lac! of capital in the underdeveloped nations or due to environmental over a"areness, giving no cognisance to such industries in the developed nations. 0o @ O and )+ are going to help the Dimension stones industry of /ndia very much if not to the other industries. More over, as a se%uel to that /ndian Dimension stones processing industry "ill get more "or! as than they can process marble from some countries and resale it to other countries. China is doing this practice since past many years and has been highly benefited from it. +long "ith easier import of foreign goods in the /ndian mar!et, these schemes also ensure similarly easy e(port of /ndian goods to foreign mar!ets. 0o the tempo created in the industry about the repercussions of these schemes is a short#sighted interpretation of these. L(?(n* &+ t3e 'ust&,ers5 /t is a fact that the li!ing of the customers for stone cladding has increased dramatically in the past three decades. Main reasons behind this are heavy production of Dimension stones ma!ing availability of these much easier and affordable. Mechani2ation has been instrumental in the development of this industry in the "orld over. 5o" the time and the cost involved in the final production of marble has been considerably reduced. +s a result marble has entered in the middle class sector of the country. 5o" marble is the cheapest and the most suitable option for flooring of the residential and official constructions. hough in the states farther from .aFasthan it may not be the cheapest option on account of transportation charges, but still it enFoys supremacy over other options for flooring. Reas&ns be3(nd t3e (n'reas(n* <&<ular(t &+ ,arble &o" cost? 5o" marble has emerged as a very cheap option for the flooring purposes. 4arlier it used to be a leisurely thing "hich could be afforded by only fe", no" it holds the t"in advantage of catering the needs of both cost conscious as "ell as elite customers see!ing e(clusivity. Moreover the cost of the competing Dimension stone i.e. granite is much higher than marble and good ceramic tiles are also costlier and less durable than marble, this point also goes in favor of the marble industry. 3eautiful loo!s? R+ thing of beauty is Foy for everS, the saying stands true for marble too. @hether its flooring or the elevation marble loo!s good. +vailability in huge variety of colors, shades and designs increase the beauty of marble all the more. Marble does not suffer the problem of monotony, "hich is one of the maFor dra"bac!s "ith the applications of granite and the ceramic tiles.

&ongevity? )enerally used Dimension stones for the purpose of flooring and elevations are marble, granite, sandstone and slate. Of these only marble and granite can be applied on the flooring as the other t"o are porous. 3oth these natural stones are long lasting. his is one of the big advantages of these over other Dimension stones and ceramic tiles. /n fact the longevity of granite is much more than marble but the historical monuments made of marble are good evidence that the longevity of marble is also "ell enough more than one e(pects.

-&,<et(t(&n +r&, t3e Marble &+ Ot3er States here is going to be some competition to the .aFasthan marble mining and processing industry "ith the development of marble industry in the other states. 3ut seeing to the %uantum of the reserves of other marble producing states vi2. )uFarat, Madhya *radesh and Carnata!a such "orries appear irrelevant. hough these states are more centrally located in the country having cheaper approach to the different parts of the country, but each of these marble mining centers are having limited varieties of marble. he processing industries of these places have to loo! ultimately to"ards .aFasthan for catering to their needs to !eep them in running conditions. Moreover entrepreneurs doing them business in these sates are mainly of .aFasthan origin only. 0o in fact development of marble industry in the other states "ill increase the demand of marble bloc!s from .aFasthan.

/M*+C O7 )O,4.5M45 *O&/C/40 O5 /5D10 .>

.ecently, )overnment has introduced many ne" la"s pertaining to the proper and sustainable development of marble industry, and these are "ell received by the persons related to the industry. Re,&8al &+ E@'(se dut 5 One of the maFor changes that the )overnment has introduced is the removal of the e(cise duty on marble (upto the annual sales of .s.8 Crore). his is a maFor step as so far marble "as the only mineral product in the country on "hich e(cise "as imposed. he removal of the e(cise duty "ill reduce the landed cost of marble to the end user and this "ill surely increase the demand of marble in the mar!et. Ne7 ,arble <&l(' 5 he ne" policy for the marble mining "ill facilitate the search of ne" marble areas in the state. he ne" policy not only allo"s the grant of mining lease for marble in the state but also permits the prospecting "or! for the search of ne" areas of marble deposits. /n total it can be said that the )overnment had reali2ed the importance of this industry and no" seems to be committed to"ards the development of the industry.

/M*+C O7 /5 4.5+ /O5+& 4,45 0 O5 M+.3&4 /5D10 .> O7 .+L+0 =+5

Marble industry of .aFasthan depends a lot on the e(port mar!et. he series of recent events throughout the "orld have affected the /ndian e(ports of marble. /t started "ith the nuclear tests conducted by the )overnment of /ndia in 8EEE. /n response to theses tests many of the "estern nations imposed sanctions on business relations "ith /ndia. his effected most of the e(port oriented /ndian industries. his "as a maFor setbac! for the marble industry of .aFasthan as there "as already a problem of surplus production. he industry "as not able to recover from the impact of these sanctions "hen the 0eptember 88, 9BB8 terrorist attac!s in 1nited 0tates "orsened the situations even more. .ate of gro"th of /ndian natural stone e(ports have decreased severely as a result of these events. +t present the international community is %uite hesitant to ma!e deals "ith the concerns of the subcontinent seeing to the disturbances bet"een /ndia and *a!istan and possibility of conflict bet"een the t"o nations. 3esides these disturbances there is one more threat to the /ndian stone industry, "hich is presented by China. /n the recent years China has started e(porting marble and other natural stones at very cheap prices and is capturing a large portion of the mar!et. /ndia being the largest producer of marble in the "orld and fifth largest e(porter has its domestic mar!et %uite safe but the international mar!et of /ndian marble has been severely affected by the Chinese mar!et policies. IM%A-T OF RE-ESSION ON RAJASTHAN.S MARBLE INDUSTRY he ongoing recession has bruised the real estate sector and the marble industry of .aFasthan. Cishangarh, "hich "as a leading to"n in marble processing till recently, has been forced to bear the brunt of recession. =undreds of marble miners and processors here have been affected by stagnancy. +ccording to the Cishangarh Marble /ndustry +ssociation, the do"n"ard trend has resulted in sales falling by 8B#8; per cent. Tuarry o"ners and processors of marbles, granites and other stones fear that the global recession can drastically affect their business. he marble industry in Cishangarh "itnessed gro"th rate of five per cent prior to the global recession. +round :,BBB people are directly employed in it "hile another 8;,BBB persons are engaged in do"nstream activities of marble industry. Over the past couple of years maFor processors in Cishangarh had also ta!en up branding of their products.

/574.45C4 6 .4COMM45D+ /O50 /574.45C4

On the basis of all the points proFected above, it is assessed that the industry has developed itself in a very good manner, especially in the past fe" years. he present harsh time faced by the industry are due to the increased supply "hich is %uite natural phenomenon for any developing industry and some other unnatural factors "hich are of short term nature. 8. *roduction of marble has increased a lot in the past fe" years and this trend "ill continue, 9. he demand of marble "ill further increase as a result of decreased prices. 3. he e(orbitant profit margins enFoyed by the producers and the traders "ill decrease and the prices of marble "ill become more regulari2ed. On the basis of the data discussed in this paper it is prognosticated that the industry "ill surely gro" in the times to come but it is e(pected to gro" in a centrali2ed manner. =eavy mechani2ation "ill largely prevail. hough ne" areas have been discovered in Madhya *radesh and )uFarat but it "ill ta!e those years to catch up "ith marble industry of .aFasthan as the Mundies for marble are in .aFasthan only. he prices of marble are e(pected to further go do"n "ith the increased competition and as the cost of production are e(pected to come further do"n in future. he total production of marble is e(pected to increase at the rate of 89G per annum or more and the e(ports of marble and products thereof from the country are e(pected to increase at around 9BG per annum. Domestic consumption of marble in the country is prognosticated to increase at the rate of around 8BG per annum. +t international level the future of .aFasthan marble industry seems to be promising. Many of the famous mines of 4urope have already e(hausted. China presents a tough competition, as it too has vast marble producing areas, developed processing industry and very competitive prices but the %uality and colour of marble from China are not very appealing. Moreover, construction activities in China have almost reached to their saturation, but the urbani2ation of /ndia has in fact Fust started, "hich provides a huge scope of domestic consumption. 1nder the given set of circumstances, /ndia is e(pected to dominate the marble industry in the "orld, "ith .aFasthan to be the hub of activities. On the basis of the studies made in the paper "e can infer that marble industry of the state is shaving a bright future, and "ill !eep on gro"ing in spite of all odds. he industry "ill rule over the "orld "ith increased production of good %uality marble, decreased production cost and increased e(ports.

.4COMM45D+ /O50
In general, the marble industry in +ajasthan has a good potential to prosper and to be one of the driving forces for the country,s overall economic well-being especially as natural resources abound. +egulating this important resource of the country is mandatory for sustainable development. Moreover, improving the quality of the final product is key to invading the international markets and establishing a reputation in this field. %igh profitability could lead to further market entry which may prove to attract more efficient production technology. This might lead to market segmentation, where value-driven and export-oriented firms will tend towards an oligopoly, whereas local-oriented cost-driven firms with relatively low technology will tend towards monopolistic competition. In all cases, to achieve a more competitive marble industry in +ajasthan in the long-run, effective government regulation is essential.

+./.+. 0.&
Marble Institute of )merica #MI)$, website" http"11www.marbleinstitute.com. 2Marble 3 4ranite2 In &M.5). #helpdesk6smeda.org.pk$. 7' 8uly '(('. Stone 2000, cited in marbleandmore.com #online reference material$. 9:orld &tone Industries" ;eading <uarrying =roduction>, In.marmoealtro.it1econ1quarrypro.asp. http?HH""".encyclopedia.comHtopicHmarble.asp(U848#marbleV titleWV7acts and information about marbleV http?HH""".google.co.inHUhlWen6sourceWhp6%WmarbleXindusrtyX"orld"ide6bt n)W)oogleX0earch6metaW6a%Wf6o%WmarbleXindusrtyX"orld"ide6fpWecd;:: D9fBEd96EB """.cdos#india.comH...HB6G9B#G9B%RO"NOSTI-ATIONG9BO7 G9BMARBLEG9BINDUSTRYG. http?HH""".stonebtb.comHmessengerH7unction/ntrHinde(.htm

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