Along the Anjani River in Jalgaon, there are communities whose livelihoods are entirely dependent on the river. One of them is the Patharvat community, stone artisans known for making pata-varvanta (grinding stone).

The riverbed of the Anjani is the only worksite Patharvat have from generations. When they are looking for stones, they tap a rock with a hammer and from the sound alone, they can tell whether it will make a good grinding plate, a lamp, or a deity. Nobody taught them this. They learned it by watching, by doing, and by living alongside the river from their childhood. Anjani river does not just give them stone. It gives them their identity, their daily purpose, and a space where their skills mean something.

Patharvats don’t have land or savings. They say, the river and its riverbed is all they have as their own. From river stone, they make pata-varvanta, ukhal-musal, oil lamps, tulsi vrindavans, deities, munjyas, toys, and stones used in building constructions.

But today, the market has changed. Concrete has replaced stone in construction; electric mixers have replaced the grinding stones. The contractor system for roads, temples, and bridges is now bringing machines and laborers from outside, leaving the Patharvats without the steady demand their products once had.

What was once 50 working families in one village doing stone work has now declined to 7-8 families. The younger generation is migrating to cities or doing whatever available work. The traditional knowledge artisans have is not being passed on to the next generation.

This craft is in danger of disappearing. For generations, Patharvats have had a deep relationship with the Anjani River. That closeness, that relation of knowing the river, is slowly fading now. And if this craft disappears completely, it will not just be an occupation that is lost. The deep relationships between this community and the river, built over generations, may lost with it.

Shreesai Kharat is a student of MA Development at Azim Premji University. His interests align with rivers, water, conservation and sustainable development.

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