Indian mineral workers brave the scorching heat in the Gujarat desert | Weather News

India experiences cyclones every year, but few places are as punishing as the salt pans of western Gujarat, where thousands of workers endure the unpredictable elements to keep the work going.

Up to 50,000 workers migrate to the remote Little Rann of Kutch for eight months, living in salt flats without electricity, health care or shelter. An oil tanker brings water for drinking and washing only once every 25 days.

Summer temperatures there exceed 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) and can rise to 47-48C (117-118F). The same heat that makes life difficult also makes the desert ideal for salt production and Gujarat accounts for nearly three-thirds of India’s salt production.

Salt is produced by pumping salt water from boreholes into shallow tanks, where it is left to evaporate in the sun and wind. Workers pick up the surface every day to ensure that the crystallization can be shiny, then break and pile the crust into piles.

“We work around the clock, … doing our work in the morning and after sunset,” 42-year-old mineral worker Babulal Narayan said. “During the hottest hours, it’s too hot to stop.”

With no trees or natural shade, workers build their own camps: frames of sticks covered with thin house cloth and plaster and wild donkey dung.

Bhavna Rathore, 17, said: “We sit here every two to three hours so that we don’t get weak or shiver. The dung blocks the sun and allows heat to escape while the thick cloth allows air to pass through, she said.

Others rely on efficient cooling systems. Kanchan Narayan, 44, hangs a bottle wrapped in a damp cloth from a rope, using air to cool the drinking water. Another worker, Poornima, drinks black tea during the day, saying that the hot drink causes sweating which cools the body in the dry air.

The India Meteorological Department has predicted “more hot days” this year in several regions, including Gujarat. At the same time, the switch from expensive diesel water pumps to low-cost solar-powered systems has reduced production costs but increased operational efficiency. Work that used to end at the end of March now continues into the hottest months.

The consequences can be fatal. Workers report fatigue, dizziness and nausea, symptoms of heatstroke that can lead to organ failure. Studies have found higher rates of dehydration, heat stress and early signs of kidney failure among groups with high salt intake.

Unseasonal rains are also adding to the problems. “A huge typhoon hit us last month, destroying minerals worth 200,000 rupees ($2,100),” Narayan said. He and his five family members earned 250,000 rupees ($2,635), about $450 each for eight months of work.

However, many say they have no choice but to return year after year.

“What do we do again?” 65-year-old laborer Rasoda Rathore asked. “We don’t have land to farm, we don’t have animals to earn our living. …