Season ends in Thoothukudi with 20 lakh-tonne salt production

Thoothukudi district's salt production season ends with 20 lakh tonnes produced, providing employment to 30,000 workers. Favorable conditions of belied SW monsoon, hot summer & strong winds led to 20% increase in production compared to last year. Price of salt has come down to ₹1,500-2,000/tonne. 10 lakh tonnes of salt stocked up to meet demand till Feb.

Salt production season of the year in the coastal district of Thoothukudi has come to an end with the production of over 20 lakh tonnes as the northeast monsoon is expected to commence within a week in Tamil Nadu as predicted by meteorologists.

Thoothukudi district, having salt pans in Vembar, Soorangudi, Veppalodai, Pattinamarudhur, Tharuvaikulam, Ayyanarpuram, Muthaiahpuram, Mullakkadu, Pullaveli, Pazhayakayal, Kovankadu and Arumuganeri to provide employment to over 30,000 workers, produces 25 lakh tonnes of salt between March and September every year.

After ‘Pongal’ in January, salt pan works, which are be stopped every year before the onset of northeast monsoon between October and December, are started for repair of the pans damaged by the seasonal rains. If the season is conducive with a hot sun and strong winds, salt production starts in mid-February itself or the salt production gets delayed by another 15 days.

Since the northeast monsoon let down the southern districts last year, the salt production started in mid-February itself this year and peaked between April and September, thanks to the belied southwest monsoon, a hot summer and the strong winds.

“With these favourable conditions, Thoothukudi district, which stands second in the county in salt production after Gujarat, produced 20 lakh tonnes this year. Though it is five lakh tonnes less than our average production capacity, we have produced 20% (five lakh tonnes) more than what we produced last year (2022),” says A.R.A.S. Dhanapalan, former secretary of Small Salt Producers’ Association.

While the production has gone up, the salt price has come down a bit this year. While a tonne of salt was procured anywhere between ₹2,500 and ₹3,000 last year during this period, the price stands between ₹1,500 and ₹2,000 this year.

The salt pans in the northern parts of the district have completely stopped the salt production, but the production is still on in a few salt pans in the southern parts of Thoothukudi. With the intermittent drizzle dampening the district over the past few days, the salt production will come to a grinding halt within a couple of days.