Rajasthan Is Tackling Its Stone Slurry Problem by Turning It Into Building Materials

Stone processing units in general tend to generate a lot of stone slurry, which end up causing a lot of problems when it comes to disposal. Given that the Kota region tends to generate massive amounts of stone slurry that upon disposal ends up mixing with water bodies and drainage systems, the Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board (RSPCB) had to find a way to address this problem immediately. So they came up with a new a technique that will convert stone slurry into bricks and building material, making them useful. There are a total of 2,500 stone processing units in and around the Kota region, and 200-250 tonnes of stone slurry is generated from the 250-odd stone processing units that are present in the city of Kota alone on a daily basis.

Disposal was a problem until the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI), Rorkee (Uttarakhand) developed this technique.

Image for representation. Photo source: Wikimedia  Amit Sharma, regional officer, RSPCB, Kota spoke to the Hindustan Times providing more clarity. He explains, "RSPCB had given ₹ 15 lakh to the CBRI around three years ago for suggesting gainful utilisation of the Kota Stone slurry, which has recently divulged a new technique for manufacturing bricks, floor tiles, wall tiles and other building material through mixing pozzolanic material with slurry."

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CBRI is now asking for ₹20 lakh to share this technique with the board, which is looking at owners of stone processing units to share the costs. According to Sharma, RSPCB is also looking to significantly subsidise the costs for units that are ready to set up projects that put slurry to good use. As the slurry problem continues to escalate in the region, the board is hoping that these projects hit the ground running sooner than later.

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