India faces brutal heatwaves each year, but few places are as punishing as the salt pans of the western state of Gujarat, where tens of thousands of workers endure near-unliveable conditions to keep the industry running. Up to 50,000 seasonal workers migrate to the remote Little Rann of Kutch region for about eight months, living on the salt flats without electricity, healthcare or permanent shelter. A tanker delivers water for drinking and washing only once every 25 days. Summer temperatures there routinely exceed 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) and can climb to 47-48C (117-118F). The same dry heat that makes life so harsh also makes the desert ideal for salt production with Gujarat accounting for roughly three-quarters of India’s salt output. Salt is produced by pumping saline water from bore wells into shallow pans, where it is left to evaporate in the sun and wind. Workers rake the surface daily to ensure even crystallisation, then break and pile the thick crust into mounds.…