“There is a lot of unnecessary green activism” – Akshaydeep Mathur, Secretary General, Federation of Mining, Associations of Rajasthan

TDB: Help us understand the role that the Federation of Mining Associations of Rajasthan (FMAR) plays in the growth of the sandstone industry.

Akshaydeep Mathur (AM): FMAR was established in 1964 and we have played a key role in providing support to the mining industry of Rajasthan. Our main goal is to ensure that mines continue to operate. We help the industry in overcoming all kinds of problems. We have also created a lot of awareness about systematic and scientific mining. As far as exports are concerned, they are mostly done by individual export houses. This, particularly since very few mine owners also own processing units. These export houses buy dimension stones from processing units and sell it to their clients abroad. Some processing units directly export as well. There is another class of exporters, although small in number, who export blocks.

TDB: How has the sandstone industry in India evolved over the years?

AM: Today, there are new polishing machines that were not there 15-20 years ago. Earlier, sandstone was mostly hand cut. But now, these machines, imported from China and Italy, cut the stone and polish it as well. Thanks to these machines, today, even polished sandstone is being exported from Rajasthan. If Rajasthan were not a landlocked state, exports would have been much higher, since transportation costs are making our life difficult.

TDB: What is the main USP of Rajasthan’s sandstone?

AM: Our sandstone has got beautiful colours, especially pink and beige colours are very popular in international markets. Dholpur Red is very vibrant too. Our colours act as a pull for the buyers and make them shell out a little extra.

TDB: Give us an idea of the sandstone reserves in Rajasthan.

AM:The reserves are huge. There is no dearth of sandstone reserves. A typical aspect of sandstone mines is that they are bedded deposits. They occur at a depth of 4-5 metre and then the bed is over. You have to then remove the over-bed and if lucky, you might hit another bed underneath. The thickness of the deposits is not much. Had the thickness been more, production would have been higher. Hence, sandstone mining is more difficult than that of other stones. Despite this, a lot of sandstone is mined in Rajasthan. Earlier, the policy of the government was to give huge areas on lease for sandstone mining. But now, there is a lot of pressure for land. This is one of the problems we are working with the government to find a solution for. We are pitching for creating mineral bearing zones and protecting them, because once a city comes up on mineral deposits, the deposits are lost forever.

TDB: The mining sector has always been at loggerheads with those fighting to protect the environment. What is FMAR doing in this regard?

AM: A lot of unnecessary green activism is going on as people feel mines are a source of pollution and environmental degradation. It is ingrained in the Indian psyche. People don’t understand that mining does not produce any hazardous waste. There is no carbon footprint. All machines used in mining are euro certified. The only thing a mining company does is dig the earth. All it needs to do after digging out the mineral is reclaim the excavated land. If that is done, the cycle is complete. The only issue thereafter is that the reclaimed land stands separately. To a layman, it looks like a scar on the face of the earth, but it is more of an aesthetic aberration. I think mining companies have been made a scapegoat to divert attention from the large scale deforestation that is going on.

TDB: Are you getting enough support from the government to carry out your activities?

AM: Yes, we are getting government support. The government has now understood the intent of the industry. We have long been trying to tell the government to differentiate between illegal and legal mining. If I have got all the clearances, then it is legal mining. Illegal mining means operating without legal permissions. Thankfully, there is now more understanding of this.

“We need to attract global buyers to trade fairs organised in India” – Ayushman Mehta, CEO, Radhey Exports

TDB: Which varieties of sandstone are popular and do well in international markets?

Ayushman Mehta (AM): Several varieties of sandstone like teak, rainbow, Dholpur beige, red sandstone, mint, chocolate, etc. are popular in and exported to western markets. Apart from this, Rajasthan is also famous for exporting slate, which is a sub category of sandstone.

TDB: In what ways, according to you, is China posing a challenge to Indian sandstone exporters?

AM: China is competing with us on the basis of cost. The Chinese work on very thin margins. Their operating cost is very low and government support is very high. For example, despite being an exporter, I pay 14% interest to banks. Then there are other costs and many taxes. Moreover, there are no incentives for sandstone exports. There is no duty drawback. Hence, there is not much enthusiasm among exporters.

On the contrary, in China, there are specialised zones for sandstone. Every month, meetings are held between the government and exporters and export organisations are asked to continuously follow up with the buyers. The Chinese government is continuously promoting their exporters. They are provided loans at just 2% interest. All this is absent in India.

TDB: How are Rajasthan’s sandstone exporters countering this Chinese threat? Besides China, what other factors are affecting your industry?

AM: One of our counter strategies has been to get cheap labour from Bihar. But that doesn’t make too much difference. The main factor that hurts us is high cost of funds. Right now, we operate at 10-11% margin, as compared to 20-25% earlier. But the interest charged by banks is 10-15%! How will we survive?

Today, with ‘Made in China’ CEC machines, one can pick up a slab, take any drawing from the computer, take the water jet and fix it. The resulting end-product looks better than even the handmade ones. As a result, the ancient labour business is also slowly dying. Moreover, Chinese businessmen are far more aggressive than us. We surrender far more easily and lack the killer instinct.

The global slowdown over the last few years has also impacted our volumes and margins. Earlier, we used to easily export 25-30 containers every month. Now, even after a lot of effort, we are being able to export only 10-12 containers per month. Today, the demand has to be created. Earlier, it used to exist on its own. This, since replicas of sandstone have come up. Ceramics is also acting as an alternative.

TDB: Are there untapped markets for Indian sandstone that you are trying to explore?

AM: South Africa has potential and we do get a lot of queries from there. But reliability of the African market is still a concern in the minds of exporters. The Australian market is also getting bigger as bigger villas are being built there. Another upcoming market is Canada.

TDB: Besides Rajasthan, which Indian states have the potential to export sandstone? Do Indian exporters get enough support from the government?

AM: Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat have good potential. Sometimes, there is support. For instance, there are fairs like Stonemart that are conducted. What generally happens at such fairs, though, is that they end up becoming platforms for Chinese and Turkish companies to sell their machines. Sandstone buyers, generally, don’t attend these fairs. I am not sure if these events are properly promoted in overseas markets. Why else are buyers not coming? For instance, Verona Fair in Italy is a global fair and attracts a lot of buyers. Indian exporters, too, are very eager to book a stall there as top European, Australian and American architects and general buyers visit the fair. But those people don’t visit India.

TDB: Being a sandstone exporter, give us your wishlist from the government.

AM: I would want mining to be regularised and labour problems addressed. The government also needs to do something about the high interest rates prevalent in India. We should also be provided with incentives. It is very difficult to survive at 10-12% margin. We should at least be provided with transportation subsidies.

TDB: What other dynamics are at play in the global sandstone market? Do Indian exporters act as price makers?

AM: We are the dominant pricemakers. However, the issue is that there is no unity in India. For instance, in Italy, the price of marble, today, is the same as it was a decade back. But in India, prices have shrunk by two-third due to domestic competition. We don’t have groups that collectively protect the interests of the industry, like how they have in Italy.

Turkey, which also exports sandstone to UK, has the advantage of geographical proximity. A consignment, which takes a month to reach UK from India, can reach there in less than a week from Turkey. Hence, some buyers in UK have started importing from Turkey, despite its sandstone being inferior in quality as compared to that of ours.

“CIS countries are emerging as new markets for Indian sandstone” – R. K. Gupta, CEO, Centre for Development of Stones (CDOS)

TDB: What role has Centre for Development of Stones (CDOS) played in enhancing sandstone exports?

R. K. Gupta (RKG): We were incorporated in 1998 as a society and our primary role has been the promotion, development of and providing support to the dimensional stone industry. We were set up here in Rajasthan, because the state is blessed and endowed with all the five generic varieties of dimensional stone – marble, granite, sandstone, slate and kota. Our role basically is trade promotion, technology upgradation and providing training.

Talking about trade promotion, in the year 2000, we conceived India Stonemart – an international stone exhibition. The second edition of the exhibition was held in 2003 and thereafter, it was made a biennial event. This January, we successfully organised the 8th edition of India Stonemart. It is a wholesome recipe for the development of the stone sector, where all stakeholders get an opportunity to gather at one place, build connections and showcase latest technologies. This initiative gave a directional approach to the industry. Over the last 17 years of our existence, we have created a strong brand equity for Indian stones.

There are several sandstone clusters – Dholpur, Karauli, Kota, Jhalawar, Boondi and Jodhpur – in Rajasthan, which has more than 80% of India’s sandstone reserves. All these clusters are home to different varieties of sandstone. Beyond Rajasthan, sandstone is also there in Madhya Pradesh and a bit in Gujarat. This is one sector, which has seen a lot of value addition in terms of products, landscaping items, paving stones, jhalis, cladding, etc. Sandstone can withstand most weather conditions, is durable and has its own texture. It is a wonderful construction material.

TDB: Exporters, however, are of the view that buyers do not come to large fairs like India Stonemart. How true is this?

RKG: This is a perennial problem of the industry as the industry, itself, does not want to invite its own buyers. As an institution, we, in whatever way we can, try to approach the buyers via trade associations and embassies. Whenever we come to know of new emerging markets, we try to reach out to those countries through trade bodies, architect bodies, missions and trade promotion councils. Buyers do come. If they would not be coming, the international stone exhibition would never be taking place and the industry would not have flourished.

TDB: Developed western countries are the major importers of sandstone from India. Do you think there are other untapped markets as well?

RKG: Markets keep changing. Nowadays, CIS countries like Siberia and Croatia are emerging as major markets for sandstone. We are getting good response from these countries. Exporters have already started exploring these markets. It is all about generating demand for stone.

TDB: Does the sandstone industry get enough help from the Rajasthan and the central governments?

RKG: The policies have, overall, been investor and industry friendly. Our role is to help develop the industry. We are not involved in policy making.

TDB: India almost has a monopoly in the global sandstone market. So, would you say we are the pricemakers?

RKG: Sandstone prices are determined on the basis of various market forces such as demand-supply, prices offered by others and quality of the stone. Being the market leader does not mean we determine the price. I would say our industry is very intelligently leveraging the situation. But the market is also increasingly getting very competitive.

TDB: What steps by the government can help increase sandstone exports further?

RKG: Only the government can support the sector, improve its visibility and come up with favourable mining and labour policies. And I must say, all this is being done.