Photos from a ceramic tile manufacturing hub in India left cold and dark by the Iran war

MORBI, India (AP) — Morbi, a vibrant industrial hub that produces over 80% of India's ceramic tiles, has been unusually quiet for the past month or so.

Since the war in Iran started there has not been enough fuel for the kilns used to make the tiles, and whatever is available is too expensive for the factories in Morbi to stay competitive. Most of the natural gas used is imported via the Strait of Hormuz.

The city in Gujarat state has thrived as a major export center due to its proximity to ports on the Arabian Sea, and the ready availability of raw materials locally.

Now some of Morbi's workers have been forced to find alternative employment while others have returned to their homes in nearby states. Only a small fraction of the workers have been retained to carry out maintenance work in the factories.

“Out of the odd 650 or 700 manufacturing units, only four to five large ones are operational as they can afford to use the more expensive propane gas,” said Hareshbhai Bhadja, one of the partners in the manufacturing unit GC Granito.

However, the recent ceasefire has brought some hope to the city’s manufacturers.

A few factories are beginning to open after supply assurance from the state government’s Gujarat Gas. Whether prices will drop to pre-war levels remains to be seen.

A family of migrant workers returns to their quarters in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A closed ceramics factory is seen following fuel shortage caused by the ongoing war in Iran, in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A migrant worker family sits in a deserted ceramics housing in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A migrant woman prepares a meal using coal at a deserted ceramic workers' quarters in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A ceramics factory lies deserted upon closure following fuel shortage in Morbi in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A man performs maintenance work on a machine at a shuttered ceramics factory following a fuel shortage, in Morbi in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Workers perform maintenance on a machine at a shuttered ceramic factory in Morbi in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Migrant workers prepare to cook at their deserted quarters at a ceramics factory in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Migrant workers stand outside their deserted quarters at a ceramics factory in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Deserted ceramic workers' quarters are seen following shortage of fuel in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Migrant workers carry ceramic tiles at a factory in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A migrant worker stacks ceramic tiles in a factory in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A migrant woman prepares a meal using firewood at a deserted ceramics workers' quarters in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A worker sweeps the floor of a closed ceramics factory in Morbi,in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A ceramics factory is seen closed following fuel shortage in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Workers arrive for maintenance work at a closed ceramics factory in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

A migrant worker sits at a deserted ceramic workers' quarters in Morbi, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

ROME (AP) — Tests have confirmed the “continued improvement” in Pope Leo XIV’s condition following lung cancer surgery, doctors said Friday, and the Vatican said he would make his first public appearance Sunday to deliver his traditional noontime prayer.

“His post-operative recovery allows him to carry out his normal daily activities completely on his own,” said a medical update signed by Leo’s personal physician Dr. Luigi Carbone and the head of thoracic surgery at the Gemelli hospital, Dr. Stefano Margaritora.

The 71-year-old Leo also presided over Mass on Friday and distributed Communion in a special chapel set up for him in the hospital, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said.

Leo had the lower lobe of his right lung removed Oct. 13 after doctors identified a suspected cancerous nodule. The surgery confirmed he had adenocarcinoma, the most common type of lung cancer.

Even as questions swirled about what his cancer means for the future of his young pontificate, there were signs Friday that it was all systems go. The Vatican on Friday published the names of journalists accredited to fly on Leo’s plane with him during his Nov. 6-17 trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru.

Leo’s ability to make the trip has been in question since his diagnosis, and the Vatican can change plans at any time. But the posting of the media list signaled that at least on an organizational level, the trip was going ahead.

In the nearer term, Vatican officials were gaming out possible scenarios for Leo to recite the traditional Sunday noontime Angelus prayer. Vatican media personnel were seen at the Gemelli hospital laying cables for a possible live broadcast, as past popes have done when hospitalized. Spokesman Bruni said he would deliver the prayer, but it wasn't clear where.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, said a recitation of the noontime prayer on Sunday from the hospital was a possibility, but would depend on Leo’s post-operative recovery. Such appearances have often served as a welcome confirmation of a hospitalized pope's well-being for the 1.4-billion strong Catholic faithful and others.

Parolin said he remained concerned about the pope, but indicated that was also a function of his surprise at learning that Leo needed surgery. Parolin, who was considered a leading contender in the conclave that elected Leo and was recently passed over as dean of the College of Cardinals, surprised some by suggesting that the pontificate itself might need to be adjusted.

“We can’t make any type of predictions,” Parolin said Thursday on the sidelines of a diplomatic event, according to the LaPresse and ANSA news agencies. “The question now is when he will return, under what circumstances he will return, and what the doctors say. And based on all these factors, the pope will then adjust his pontificate, if it needs to be adjusted,” he was quoted as saying.

Doctors are still awaiting the results of tests to understand the precise molecular and genetic makeup of the cancer, whether it has spread beyond the lobe and whether any further treatment is necessary.

Meanwhile, the Vatican on Friday released photos of some get-well notes that had been sent to Leo from patients at Gemelli's pediatric oncology ward, located on the 10th floor, where popes past have often visited during their own hospitalizations.

One, from 7-year-old Angelo, told Leo that he had been on the 10th floor for 36 days. “My mother and I pray for you every night. Get well soon," he wrote, with little hearts at the bottom.

Giorgia, a university-aged student, wrote to Leo in his native English, saying she had long loved learning and practicing the language.

“When I heard on the news about you and your situation, I felt it a thousand times harder, because in some ways we're going through the same thing, and it made me feel closer to you,” she wrote. “I pray to God that we both heal and I ask you to pray for me, too.”

Associated Press visual journalist Trisha Thomas contributed to this report.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

A woman holds photos of Pope Leo XIV as she prays at the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic where the pontiff is hospitalised, in Rome, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

The moon rises behind the statue of late Pope St. John Paul II at the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic where Pope Leo XIV is hospitalised, in Rome, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Leo XIV arrives at the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, where he's expected to be operated to remove a lung nodule. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

An image of Pope Leo XIV is seen under the statue of late Pope St. John Paul II at the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic where the pontiff is hospitalised, in Rome, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

An image of Pope Leo XIV is seen under the statue of late Pope St. John Paul II at the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic where the pontiff is hospitalised, in Rome, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)