The basalt stone quarries of eastern India

Abstract

Quarrying of basalt stone in the Early Cretaceous Rajmahal Trap region of eastern India is increasing at an alarming pace. The quarries have created an extensive ugly landscape of pits and overburden dumps. The stone workshops continuously emit dust. These quarries generate year‐round employment in an impoverished terrain. The workforce mostly comprises the socio‐economically deprived indigenous tribal population. They are an important source of income to the State Governments of Jharkhand and West Bengal. While the need for building stone cannot be denied in a region that is rapidly industrialising and urbanising, issues of land degradation and health cannot be ignored. The paper offers measures to contain environmental degradation and generate alternative sources of income with bio‐fuel crops such as Jatropha curcas.

Keywords:

• Land degradation
• Livelihood
• Stone quarries
• India

Acknowledgement

The author is grateful to the University Grants Commission, India, for financing the present research. She is immensely grateful to Dr M Brett‐Crowther for his valuable suggestions and encouragement. The author acknowledges the contribution of Ms Manjusha Misra, Urban Architect & Planner, MANIT, MAP, Bhopal, on the Indigenous Tribal Community, section 5.1 (references 13–17) and her patient general help in preparing the paper.

Notes