Mahoba falls in the Bundelkhand division of UP. The district was carved out from the erstwhile Hamirpur district on 11 February 1995. The district has been known for its bravery; the story of Veer ALHA and UDAL defines its importance in Indian history. Moreover, it is also known for its closeness to historic places Khajuraho, Laundi, Kulpahar, Charkhari, Kalinjar, Orchha, and Jhansi.

The name Mahoba is derived from “Mahotsav Nagar”, the city of great festivals. The Bardic tradition preserves three other names of the city: Kekaipur, Patanpur and Ratanpur. The existence of the sacred “Ram-Kund” and “Seeta-Rasoi” cave at the Gokhar hill here are said to be monumental to the visit of Rama who widely treated this hill region while in 14 year exile at Chitrakoot. In 2006, the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Mahoba one of the country’s 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640). It is one of the 34 districts in Uttar Pradesh currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).

Mahoba is located between latitude 250 07’ N & 260 7’ N and longitude 790 17’E & 800 21’E. The geographical area is 3,144 km squire. Northern flat plane along with river is less than 1000 feet above sea level and divide of hills or forest patches with a maximum height of 2000 feet from sea level. Nearest airport is Khajuraho 65 KM. Mahoba is connected by road to all major cities and road distance is: Chitrakoot-125 KM, Kanpur-155 KM, Jhansi-165 KM, Allahabad-245 KM, Lucknow-240 KM, Banda-52 KM and Kalinjar-130 KM.

The soil consists of the well-known varieties, Mar, Kabar, Parua and Rakar. Mar is often called blank cottar soil. Its varies greatly in colour. It contains small lumps of kankar (small stone piece). Kabar range from a rich dark black to light brown. Its chief characteristics are its extreme adhesiveness, which causes it to quickly dry and cake into hard blocks. Parua is a light coloured sandy soil, found in many forms. It is usually less rich in organic matter, but its finer texture makes it more responsive to manure and irrigation. Rakar is refuse soil which occurs on sloping, where the action of water has tended to denude the earth of all its better qualities The following table depicts the land utilization pattern of the district: 2

The district has around 2,634 registered units employing 8,390 individuals.2 These units are from various sectors including agricultural & allied, electrical, wood-based, Ready-made/Hosiery garments & embroidery etc. The following table depicts the key industries of the district: 2

Major exportable product

Gaura stone craft is made of radiant white coloured stone that is predominantly found in this district. Gaura stone has a soft texture which when cut into several pieces is used to make various craft items that are used for decorative purposes.

Gaura stone craft is made of radiant white coloured stone that is predominantly found in this district. Gaura stone has a soft texture which when cut into several pieces is used to make various craft items that are used for decorative purposes. The artisans in the village have been majorly dependent on the mines located within the village for sourcing of raw material for making the products. These mines have been now shut down(since the last 4 years) due to an accident that took place a couple of years back. The Gaura Udyog Shakari Samiti was established in 1974 at Gaurhari village. The existing society “Gaura Udyog Sehkari Samiti” is the entity was looking after and managing the mining activity and regulating the supply of stone to the artisans. The Gaura Stone product has been preserved by Shri Kalidin Vishwakarma and shri Brijkishore Vishwakarma. The figure alongside depicts key facts pertaining to the district.

Pyrophyllite is the category of the stone which is used for making stone products, and scrap of the stone is utilized for making power which is utilized in production of toothpaste, detergent powder and talcum powder.

The existing products range includes:
► Statues & idols
► Decorative utensils
► Lamps ;

The following are the key cluster stakeholders:
► Makers of the product: units & artisans
► Raw material suppliers
► Wholesalers/ Distributors/ Retailers

The cluster has no active industry associations in the district however, DC(Handicrafts), UPHDMC support the craft at state level to facilitate the craft’s promotion, production and marketing at a small scale.;

HS code;

From obtaining the stone to trimming and shaping it, the craft involves a lot of hard-work and expenditure. This stone is used for making various types of decorative items. These items are sold across the country and exported as well. The cluster does not undertake direct exports however, the products are sold to various countries indirectly by the traders of the state. Thus to analyze export data of Gaura stone craft, HSN code 680299 has been used. The figure alongside depicts the key stats pertaining to exports of the product. ;

The below figure shows the key importers of this product for the above mentioned HS code:
The potential markets for India and the cluster to tap have been identified as follows based on Signed FTAs, High Growth Markets, Untapped Potential the countries which India is exporting but UP isn’t. Thus, the following countries should be targeted to increase the sales and turnover of the cluster:

The cluster actors/ stakeholders can divert their focus on creating products like , Coasters, jewelry box, flower vase etc. These additional product range could help expand the existing market of the cluster by catering to a larger audience