The sandstone deposits are found mainly in Rajasthan - the only place in India with extensive deposits. The districts of Karauli, Dholpur and Bharatpur on the east, Kota, Bundi, Bhilwara and Chittorgarh on the south, and Nagaur and Jodhpur on the west of Jaipur are the most promising ones. The extension of deposits can be seen on the map. Shivpuri and Lalitpur in Madhya Pradesh also have some deposits of sandstone. Lemon Tint Mint and Lalitpur Yellow are being exported in different sizes and thicknesses.

No assessment of these deposits has been done as it is a minor mineral. Small leases have been allotted from time to time by the Directorate of Mines & Geology. The dead rent per hectare is levied on an annual basis. A royalty of Rs. 30 per tonne has to be paid. Both dead rent and royalty are collected by the Directorate of Mines & Geology.

Quarrying

Mechanisation in the quarries has not been done as the leases are small. There is a lot of over burden and the deposits are not operated by rich people. Simple methods of quarrying are used to remove the over burden and to take out the stone slab. Finally, these are taken to a factory for processing.

Not even one company has used excavators for removal of the over burden and opening the quarry. Since the size of slab extracted does not exceed 2x1 m, manual splitting at the quarry site is normally done. The loading in the truck is also manual.

Looking to the potential which this industry has, some of the big businessmen have also entered into quarrying of sandstones in Rajasthan. One company in Dholpur has 16 square km of lease. They were the pioneers in quarrying and subsequent processing of sandstone. The area near Dholpur and Karauli is boarding a river Chambal which was also famous for dacoits. Therefore, big businessmen in the vicinity refrained from entering in this business. However, the exporters in Jaipur, Deoli, Kund, New Delhi and Mumbai purchase these stones from small quarry owners and export in natural or processed form.

Processing

So far hand dressed sandstone slabs and tiles in different thickness and colours have been exported. The overseas buyers also demand machine cut tiles. Simple edge cutting machines with single and double cutters have been used near the deposits or even in the processing centres where the exporters have their own factories. During the last two years the trend had been to calibrate these tiles in thickness of 10 or 12 mm with one side natural and the other calibrated. Two companies have been manufacturing calibrating and polishing plants. Calibration units are located at Kund, Deoli, New Delhi and Jaipur. These units have been used for calibrating slates, sandstones, quartzites and limestones. Four units have polishing lines for 30x30x1 and 40x40x1 cm tiles. Some traditional machines for calibration have also been developed recently, they are very cheap and are mostly used for reducing the thickness of tiles. Some of the exporters finally calibrate on sophisticated but expensive machines while thickness reduction is done on traditional calibrating machines.

For the last one year polished, chamfered and calibrated tiles in size of 30x30x1 cm, 40x40x1,2 cm are being processed and exported to U.S.A. and Europe. Pink, beige and red sandstones have been used for such polished and calibrated tiles.

The value addition is considerable with polished and calibrated tiles. While rough Agra Red tiles in size of 30x30x1,5 or 2,5 cm are exported at US$ 7,50 per square metre, the polished and calibrated tiles in 30x30x1 cm are usually exported at around US$ 18 per square metre.

Domestic market

Red sandstone was first promoted for monuments and commercial buildings specially in New Delhi. Rashtrapathi Bhawan, North Block, South Block, Supreme Court of India, India Gate, Parliament House, etc., all of them popular tourist landmarks, are some of the known applications of red and beige sandstones. Looking to the beautiful look it provided, some of the architects in New Delhi started using sandstone for cladding in residential houses, commercial buildings and hotels. Sandstone honed tiles and dressed stones became popular for exterior applications. This trend was followed by architects in Jaipur and Jodhpur. While bigger pieces have been used for special applications, the waste material of cut to size and dressed stones is sold in the form of strips, tiles, etc. It was another way of using waste material from the quarries.

Sandstone tiles in varying thickness of 20 to 30 mm have been extensively used in exterior cladding and garden pathways.

The demand for sandstone slabs and tiles as well as veneering stones has also been increasing every day. The main advantage of using these stones has been negligible maintenance. The consumption of sandstone has been increasing and different applications in different designs are being made.

Exports

Natural cleft sandstone in size of 90x60 cm, 60x60 cm, 50x40 cm and 30x30 cm in different thickness is also becoming popular overseas. Honed, polished and calibrated varieties in size of 30x30x1 cm and 40x40x1cm are being exported.

For exterior flooring of driveways, pedestrian paths, garden paths, Agra Red sandstone in the size of 90x60cm or 60x60 cm in thickness from 20 to 35 mm is being regularly exported. Because of it bright red colour it achieved prominence. Many architects prefer red granite polished slabs and tiles in exterior cladding in the Far East. Because of the recession and fluctuations in exchange rate, many architects in the Far East starting looking for cheaper stones in red colour. Red sandstone was an alternative to such cladding. Some of the known countries where pink, beige and red sandstone finds its application are Korea, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore and China.

So far granite cobbles in assorted size and colour have been exported for pavements and street pathways. For almost three years sandstone cobbles in size of 14x14x7 cm and 14x14x8 cm in blue and brown colours are being used in Germany and Belgium. Some of the architects in Belgium and Germany have found this fine grained blue sandstone suitable for paving roads and pathways. The main advantage lies in the fact that one surface is almost even which provides a smooth floor after laying. Demand for such cobble stones is increasing.

The demand for sandstone tiles is picking up and it is hoped that in the early years of the next millennium the export of natural and calibrated as well as polished and calibrated tiles shall increase in geometric progression.

For exterior veneering sandstone strips and hand-dressed pieces have not found much of a market abroad up to now. It is hoped that after proper marketing it would be possible to export these stones as well for exterior cladding in a sizeable quantity.

Present applications

In India sandstone is extensively used in residential houses, office buildings, commercial complexes, hotels, restaurants and special monuments. Artefacts made of stone - screens, fountains, pedestals, columns, arches, balusters, railings - have become popular. The present trend is to make these stone carvings in the best possible manner with man and machines. The recent example of the use of sandstone screens and columns was the renovation of Leela Palace Goa Resort in Goa, where the American architect decided to remove the existing granite/marble columns and decor and replace it with sandstone.

Items made of sandstone have extensively been promoted by architects in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and U.S.A. In the entire Middle East - Oman, Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait - architects have used sandstone carved materials in residential villas. Even the architects from U.S.A. who are constructing villas in Saudi Arabia have used sandstone carvings. Some architects from Riyadh are very much fascinated with Indian sandstone architecture. In their each and every new creation, some stone carvings are used for their clients. They want century old stone art to be revived today.

The future

It is only skill which produces best artefacts. Small tools have been used these days so as to reduce the manual labour. However, for making large number of pieces, mechanisation to some extend is required. The whole industry is in the hands of small artisans with hardly any investment capabilities. A small Design-cum-Development Centre, some machines to provide assistance and a set of hand-tools would go a long way in reviving this traditional art, which is not only to create value addition, but also generates employment and earns foreign exchange for the country. While 60x60 cm stone slabs are exported at US$ 10 per square meter, a stone screen in the same size is sold at US$ 80 per square meter.

Proper interaction of foreign architects with Indian companies can help a great deal in achieving this objective. The time has come when a complete project can be made in India and given to the client in its preferred shape and form. This would provide a lot of value addition and would also help in reviving the talent of artisans in a significant manner.