Cigma Pvt. Ltd.: Pioneer of Marble and Granite from Makrana in Rajasthan.

www.cigmamarble.com : Mr. A. R. Choudhri, Managing Director of Cigma Pvt. Ltd..
Mr. A. R. Choudhri

Over the centuries Makrana and Marble have become synonymous with each other. Makrana became famous for marble worldwide after the construction of the Taj Mahal of Agra. There is also evidence of use of marble from Makrana in Sarnath, now in Uttar Pradesh, which was once the capital city of Samrat Ashok.
The commercial production of marble here started after about a hundred years since the construction of Taj Mahal. At that time the localities, called Silawat, were engaged as workers in the mines. They were instrumental in digging, excavating, carving and polishing of the stone. This community is the real pioneer in exploring and developing the Marble trade by their skillful craftsmanship in carving the idols of various Gods and Goddesses which have been installed in almost every village of undivided Indian sub-continent.

The family of Mr. A. R. Choudhri has also been traditionally engaged in the mining of marble and also in its conversion into marvelous handicraft pieces. Mr. Choudhri's father, Late Mr. Mubarak Ali, established a trading house way back in 1896 and came into this business. Most of the Silawat families were, at that time, holding mining pattas granted to them by the Maharaja of Jodhpur after the completion of Taj Mahal.
In 1915 the British Government decided to construct Victoria Memorial in Calcutta to celebrate the first visit of Queen Victoria to India. Martin Burn Company was formed, new machines were imported from England and a marble processing factory was established which worked for about ten years in completing the project.

After the completion of the Victoria Memorial Project the factory machines were sold out, a fourth of which were purchased by H.S. Nathu Company and another one fourth was purchased by M/s R. G. Bansal & Co.. Both of them shifted the machies to other locations. The remaining factory with the premises was purchased by Mr. A. R. Choudhri's father and grand father in the name of H.S. Husainbux Fazalji. All the three factories are still existing and their descendants are still in the same business. Thereafter, a few more factories were also established. They used Indian remakes of the imported machinery. At that time the system of sawing marble blocks using water and sand was prevalent. It was a very slow process enabling the cutting of marble blocks of normal hardness only.

At that time Mr. A. R. Choudhri's father was holding 75% of business in Makrana and took up several projects of importance in India. Some of these are listed hereunder:-

Palithana Jain Temple which was completed in 1940
Supply of marble block and slabs to Radha Soami Samodh work in Agra
Supply and construction of nearly 90% Jain Temples in Gujarat
Construction of the Tomb of Mirza Ghalib, New Delhi
Construction of Dargah Hazratbal, Shrinagar
Construction of the Tomb of His Holiness Bohras Peer Tahir Saifuddin Sahib, the religious head of Bohar Community
Construction of the Maharana Pratap Memorial at Udaipur
Saraswati Temple, Pilani (Rajasthan)
Birla Mandir, Hydrabad
Trimurti Memorial, Lucknow
Shankracharya Memorial, Kedarnath (Himachal Pradesh)
Gwalior Maharaja's Palace and Chhatries (Tombs)
Various other Temples, Gurudwaras, Mosques and commercial buildings like Air India, Bombay

GLIMPSES OF CIGMA AT WORK


Mining In Progress	Finished Product Packed For Shipment


A View Of The Mines

www.cigmamarble.com : Machinery for processing Marble blocks.

Machining

Marble Slabs

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