Unseasonal rains hit livelihoods of Gujarat salt makers

Gujarat accounts for 70% of India's salt production

Unseasonal rains last week have washed away over 200,000 tonnes of salt, affecting the livelihoods of nearly 2,000 small and medium salt producers cultivating salt in the Little Rann of Kutch area of Gujarat. Most of these salt makers cultivate salt in less than 10 acres of land.

Hundreds of workers had to be evacuated by villagers living close to the salt pans on April 20 after heavy rains. The salt makers were on the verge of harvesting the salt when rain lashed the Kharaghoda, Santalpur, Adesar, Halvad and Maliya areas, washing away salt that was ready to be transported for processing.

"Nearly 2,000 salt makers have been affected because of the unseasonal rains. This has resulted in a loss of Rs 30-40 crore, as the salt that was ready for harvest in the salt pans was washed away," said Harinesh Pandya, general secretary of the Agariya Hitrakshatk Manch - an association of salt pan workers and small and medium salt makers. "Over 200,000 tonnes of salt has been washed away in the rain."

"We have begun assessing the exact loss to the salt makers in the affected areas. Based on this assessment, we plan to propose compensation from the state government for small salt making units. For this we will give a memorandum to the block-level revenue officer and the district collector," Pandya said, adding that those affected are traditional salt manufacturers who have been in the business for over three generations.

Gujarat accounts for nearly 70 per cent of India's salt production. Last year 12 million tonnes of salt was produced in Gujarat, which is likely to increase to 14-15 million tonnes this year, according to the Indian Salt Manufacturers Association (ISMA).

"The salt makers have suffered a production loss of 10-15 days due to unexpected rains in April. They will be able to cultivate salt again only after the water in the semi-desert region recedes," said ISMA President P N Rao. However, salt pans in the coastal areas have not been affected, he said.

According to Rao, exporters have also incurred losses of nearly Rs 10 crore, as their salt lying in stockyards was also washed away.

There are over 2,320 units across 15 districts in Gujarat which manufacture salt. Of them, 1,654 units cultivate salt in less than 10 acres. Salt is cultivated in 425,000 acres of land in the state, and thousands of workers are employed.