Kishangarh marble slurry dump yard poses health hazard: Study

The pristine white sand at the marble slurry dump yard in Kishangarh is a hot spot for tourists. However, the "Switzerland of Rajasthan" is a major source of air, water and soil pollutions, according to a report.

- Urvashi Dev Rawal

JAIPUR:

A study by Prof LK Sharma, head of the department of environmental science, and his team from the Central University of Rajasthan has found high levels of toxic metals in the soil, water and air samples from the Kishangarh dumping site at Ajmer district in Rajasthan.

Kishangarh, about 100 km south of Jaipur, is Asia's largest marble market with more than 9,000 marble seller units. The annual turnover of the marble units is over ₹6,000 crore and the sector offers employment to around 70,000 direct and indirect people.

However, the growth of the stone processing industry has parallelly created Asia's biggest marble slurry dumping yard, which has turned into a tourists' hot spot with the site even being promoted online.

The white slurry dumping site is spread over 332 bighas of land in RIICO industrial area on the outskirts of Kishangarh. The site is picturesque with a sheet of white slurry, a blue pond in the middle and the backdrop of the Aravallis and has become a favourite hub for fashion shoots, music videos, pre-wedding shoots, and thousands of tourists visiting each year, unmindful of the health hazards.

However, the flip side is that the slurry has leached into the ground, poisoning the water and soil and making it unfit for habitation, the study found. The study carried out in April 2023 shows that crop productivity, water and soil quality have deteriorated.