Makrana | |
---|---|
Urban | |
Nickname(s): Sangemarmar Nagari | |
Location in Rajasthan, India | |
Coordinates: 27°03′N 74°43′E / 27.05°N 74.72°ECoordinates: 27°03′N 74°43′E / 27.05°N 74.72°E | |
Country | India |
State | Rajasthan |
District | Nagaur |
Named for | Makran City of Iranian Saltanat |
Government | |
• Type | Democratic |
• Body | Municipal Council Makrana |
Elevation | 408 m (1,339 ft) |
Population (2011) | |
• Total | 203,987 |
Languages | |
• Official | Hindi & English |
Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
PIN | 341505 |
Vehicle registration | RJ-21, RJ-37 |
Literacy rate | 67.5% |
Makrana is a municipal council and a tehsil in the Nagaur district of Rajasthan, India. There are more than 136 villages under this thesis, making Makrana one of the biggest tehsils in Nagour District. Makrana is famous for the white stone and marble taken from the mines around it. Makrana marble was used in construction of the Taj Mahal. Makrana is a large town and has many marble outcrops. Most of the residents in Makrana earn their livelihood from mining marble.
Makrana is located at 27°03′N 74°43′E / 27.05°N 74.72°E, and has an average elevation of 408 metres (1,339 ft). It lies in the middle of the Aravalli Range, and these mountains are the source of its fame as a marble producer.
Makrana was a princely state in British India. It is home to some of the world's most renowned white marble sites, from which the Taj Mahal, Victoria Memorial of Kolkata, Birla Temple of Jaipur and Jain Temple of Dilwara in Southern Rajasthan were built. It is said that the 1800 artisans who settled Makrana originally came from a coastal strip in the south of Sindh and Balochistan, in Pakistan and Iran, also called Makrana. These artisans came to India to build the Taj Mahal.
The town is served by railroads and other forms of transportation, serving as a key junction between Jaipur, Parbatsar and Jodhpur.