Thar Desert, arid region of rolling sand hills on theIndian subcontinent. It is located partly inRajasthan state, northwesternIndia, and partly inPunjab andSindh (Sind) provinces, easternPakistan.

The Thar Desert covers some 77,000 square miles (200,000 square km) of territory. It is bordered by the irrigatedIndus Riverplain to the west, thePunjab Plain to the north and northeast, theAravalli Range to the southeast, and theRann of Kachchh to the south. Thesubtropical desert climate there results frompersistenthigh pressure and subsidence at that latitude. The prevailing southwestmonsoonwinds that bring rain to much of the subcontinent in summer tend to bypass the Thar to the east. The name Thar is derived fromthul, the general term for the region’ssand ridges.

Land

The Thar’s desertsands overlieArchean (earlyPrecambrian)gneiss (metamorphic rocks formed between 4 billion and 2.5 billion years ago),Proterozoic (later Precambrian)sedimentary rocks (formed about 2.5 billion to 541 million years ago), and more-recentalluvium (material deposited byrivers). The surface consists ofaeolian (wind-deposited) sand that has accumulated over the past 1.8 million years.

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Thedesert presents an undulating surface, with high and lowsand dunes separated by sandyplains and lowbarren hills, orbhakars, which rise abruptly from the surrounding plains. The dunes are in continual motion and take on varying shapes and sizes. Older dunes, however, are in a semi-stabilized or stabilized condition, and many rise to a height of almost 500 feet (150 metres) above the surrounding areas. Severalplayas (salinelake beds), locally known asdhands, are scattered throughout the region.

The soils consist of several main groups—desert soils, red deserticsoils, sierozems (brownish gray soils), the red and yellow soils of the foothills, the saline soils of the depressions, and the lithosols (shallow weathered soils) andregosols (soft loose soils) found in the hills. All those soils are predominantly coarse-textured, well-drained, and calcareous (calcium-bearing). A thick accumulation of lime often occurs at varying depths. The soils are generally infertile and, because of severe winderosion, are overblown with sand.

The amount of annual rainfall in the desert is generally low, ranging from about 4 inches (100 mm) or less in the west to about 20 inches (500 mm) in the east.Precipitation amountsfluctuate widely from year to year. About 90 percent of the total annual rainfall occurs during theseason of the southwest monsoon, from July to September (see alsoIndian monsoon). During other seasons the prevailing wind is the dry northeast monsoon. May and June are the hottest months of the year, withtemperatures rising to 122 °F (50 °C). During January, the coldest month, the mean minimum temperature ranges between 41 and 50 °F (5 and 10 °C), and frost is frequent.Dust storms and dust-raising winds, often blowing withvelocities of 87 to 93 miles (140 to 150 km) per hour, are common in May and June.

The desert vegetation is mostly herbaceous or stunted scrub;drought-resistanttrees occasionally dot the landscape, especially in the east. On the hills,gum arabicacacia and euphorbia may be found. Thekhajri (orkhejri) tree (Prosopis cineraria) grows throughout the plains.

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The thinly populatedgrasslands supportblackbucks, chikara (gazelles), and some featheredgame, notablyfrancolins (partridges) andquail. Among the migratorybirds, sandgrouse,ducks, andgeese are common. The desert is also the home of the endangered great bustard.

People

Most of the desert’s inhabitants reside in rural areas and are distributed in varying densities. BothIslam andHinduism are practiced, and thepopulation is divided into complex economic and social groups. The prevailing languages areSindhi in the southwest,Lahnda in the northwest, andRajasthani languages—especially Marwari—in central and eastern portions of the Thar. The ethniccomposition of the Thar isdiverse. Among the most prominent groups are theRajputs, who inhabit the central Thar. Many nomads are engaged inanimal husbandry, crafts, or trade. In general, thenomads aresymbiotically related to the sedentary population and its economy.

Economy

Thegrasses form the main natural resources of thedesert. They provide nutritive pasturage as well as medicines used locally by the inhabitants.Alkaloids, used for makingmedicine and oils for makingsoap are also extracted. There are five major breeds ofcattle in the Thar. Among those the Tharparkar breed is the highest yielder ofmilk, and the Kankre breed is good both as abeast of burden and as a milk producer.Sheep are bred for both medium-fine and roughwool.Camels are commonly used for transport as well as for plowing the land and other agricultural purposes. Wherewater is available, farmers growcrops such aswheat andcotton.

However, water is scarce. Whatever seasonalrain falls is collected in tanks and reservoirs and is used for drinking and domestic purposes. Mostgroundwater cannot be utilized, because it lies deep underground and is often saline. Goodaquifers have been detected in the central part of the desert. Apart from wells and tanks,canals are the main sources of water in the desert. TheSukkurBarrage on theIndus River, completed in 1932, irrigates the southern Thar region inPakistan by means of canals, and theGang Canal carries water from theSutlej River to the northwest. TheIndira Gandhi Canal irrigates a vast amount of land in the Indian portion of the Thar. The canal begins at theHarike Barrage—at theconfluence of theSutlej andBeas rivers in theIndian Punjab—and continues in a southwesterly direction for some 290 miles (470 km).

Thermal power-generating plants, fueled bycoal andoil, supply power only locally in the large towns.Hydroelectric power is supplied by the Nangal power plant located on the Sutlej River in Punjab.

Roads andrailways are few. One railway line serves the southern part of the region. In the Indian part of the desert, a second line goes from Merta Road to Suratgarh viaBikaner, and another connectsJodhpur andJaisalmer. In the Pakistani part of the desert, a railway line runs betweenBahawalpur andHyderabad.

Thepartition of India and Pakistan in 1947 left most of theirrigation canals fed by the rivers of theIndus system in Pakistani territory, while a largedesert region remained unirrigated on the Indian side of the border. The Indus Water Treaty of 1960 fixed and delimited the rights andobligations of both countries concerning the use of waters of the Indus River system. Under the agreement, waters of theRavi, Beas, and Sutlej rivers are to be made available to the Indira Gandhi Canal mainly to irrigate portions of the Thar in westernRajasthan.