The Indian salt industry is embarking on a modernisation exercise to increase salt yields and improve quality. The Indian Salt Manufacturers’ Association (ISMA) proposes to establish model salt farms in all major salt growing states like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Karnataka.
The plan is to demonstrate to salt workers how to produce good quality salt with higher yields. These model farms will facilitate the adoption of modern technology by salt makers. The farms will have different salt-making techniques, harvesting methods and washery mechanisms for demonstration purposes.
“The steps taken by the salt department in collaboration with the state governments and the Central Salt and Marine Chemicals Research Institute (CSMCRI) in Bhavnagar for setting up a model salt farm in Orissa have amply demonstrated that production of good quality salt is feasible. Hence, similar model salt farms may be set up in other key salt growing states in the country,” said Bachubhai Ahir, president of ISMA.
Salt-making in India has remained a labour-intensive industry, with nearly 95 per cent of salt producers being in the unorganised sector, accounting for about 40 per cent of India’s total salt output. Only five per cent are organised players, and produce the remaining 60 per cent. The industry has an annual turnover of Rs 2,000 crore, half of which is contributed by the Gujarat-based salt industry.
Salt production is vulnerable to climatic uncertainties. Excess rain causes dilution of salt panes, leading to delays in harvests. Also, the manual nature of the industry affects product quality. In order to address these issues, ISMA has submitted a memorandum to the salt committee (which comprises top government officials and industry representatives), which met last month to discuss the challenges facing the salt industry.
While Gujarat produces about 70 per cent of the country’s salt in volume terms, it is also the only state where land is still available. “It has come to our notice that applications for grant of land on lease for more than one lakh acres for the production of salt are pending with the Gujarat government, which needs to be expedited for the growth of the salt industry,” ISMA said in the memorandum submitted to the salt committee.
Rajasthan, having a large area under desert, requires special attention for development of the salt industry. The state has the potential to explore subsoil brine, which has a high sodium sulphate content. But it gets crystallised along with salt, which makes it unsuitable for both edible purposes as well as the chlor alkali industry. There is therefore a need to develop an economically viable technique to produce high-grade subsoil salt for retail and industrial consumers.
ISMA underlined the urgent need to explore subterranean sources of saline water to increase productivity per acre. It also suggested that salt testing laboratories be modernised and their services be provided to the industry for a fee.
While edible salt demand has remained more or less stable over the years, industrial demand is projected to swell to about 17 million tonnes by 2020, from the current 10 million tonnes. Against total production of around 19 million tonnes, consumption of edible salt is pegged at 6.5 million tonnes, while about two million tonnes is exported.
