‘Unbearable’ heat makes Pakistan’s date harvest a gruelling battle for workers

‘Unbearable’ heat makes Pakistan’s date harvest a gruelling battle for workers

KHAIRPUR, Aug 14 — In blazing temperatures, Muhammad Idrees ladles boiled dates from a vat simmering over an open flame, work that labourers lament is getting hotter each year in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province.Date season arrives in July, when temperatures in Sindh regularly hit the mid-40 degrees Celsius.Workers start before sunrise, and split the day into short shifts, but the heat soon catches up with them.Their gruelling routine involves…