Health1 min read

‘Like Kashmir’: How a toxic marble dump yard became a tourist spot in India

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The 300-acre "Snow Yard" in Rajasthan has gained widespread popularity among tourists and film crews who mistake its white slurry mounds for a winter landscape. However, the site absorbs roughly 5,500 tonnes of daily waste from roughly 1,200 local processing units, transported by about 1,000 tankers each day. The blowing industrial residue has triggered widespread respiratory and skin conditions across at least six neighboring villages. Furthermore, the settled particles harden the soil, significantly impairing the ability of farming families to grow their crops.

Key points

  • Asia's largest marble slurry landfill has become an unlikely destination for sightseers d…: Asia's largest marble slurry landfill has become an unlikely destination for sightseers despite being an active industrial waste site.
  • The lucrative regional stone industry powers the local economy while generating thousands…: The lucrative regional stone industry powers the local economy while generating thousands of tonnes of hazardous daily waste.
  • Blowing toxic residue creates severe respiratory and skin ailments for approximately 5,00…: Blowing toxic residue creates severe respiratory and skin ailments for approximately 5,000 nearby residents.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

The vast ‘snow yard’ in otherwise arid Rajasthan state attracts hundreds of tourists daily, but residents face severe health risks.

Kishangarh, India – As Bagharam Gurjar kneels to pull weeds from his maize field in western India’s Rajasthan state, the sound of his wife coughing nearby makes him restless.

“Everything gets ruined when dust settles on the soil,” says Gurjar, 53, barely looking up.

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“May God make everything right,” replies his wife between bouts of chronic cough. “Otherwise, it becomes difficult to grow crops.”

The Gurjars are among nearly 5,000 people living in the vicinity of what has turned out to be one of the most unusual tourist destinations in India.

Their village, Bhogiyawas, is just 6km (4…

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