RAS question
The world-famous white marble used in the construction of the Taj Mahal was sourced from which place in Rajasthan?
Correct answer: (B) Makrana.
The world-famous white marble used in the construction of the Taj Mahal was sourced from Makrana in Rajasthan.
Explanation
Makrana is the answer because the Rajasthan Stone Craft page says the quarries at Makrana are famous and that the marble used in the Taj Mahal was mined from these quarries. Makrana is in Nagaur district and is the source of the iconic white marble used in the Taj Mahal and other historical monuments. This matters in Rajasthan geography because the state is a major marble producer, and Makrana marble is treated as a marker of high-quality, internationally recognised stone. So the question is not asking for a generic marble-producing area; it is asking for the historically specific Taj Mahal source, which is Makrana.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Abu Road is in Sirohi and is not identified here as the marble centre from which the Taj Mahal stone was sourced.
- (C) Rajsamand has some marble, but Makrana, not Rajsamand, is the Taj Mahal source.
- (D) Kishangarh is associated here with miniature paintings, while the Taj Mahal marble source is Makrana.
Concept
This tests Rajasthan's economic and mineral geography, especially the mapping of famous stone resources to their centres. RAS repeats such questions because Rajasthan's marble belts and craft-linked resources connect geography, culture and historical monuments.