Thar rejoices as heavy rain turns district green
The desert Thar region of Sindh is often faced by droughts, forcing residents to migrate to areas near barrages with their cattle and families, causing various health complications. But for the past two years, the region has been blessed with erratic but bountiful rainfall.
This year, even though the district was hit by continuous rain since mid-July, the downpours were delayed and people were not able to cultivate traditional crops, except for the hilly Parkar area.
Heavy rain has turned the entire desert district green and its 70 million cattle have more than enough fodder for the next few months.
“Though we could not sow our traditional crops like guar or barley, our goats, sheep, cows and camels will have plenty of fodder and are very happy,” said Sajan Bheel, who was using donkeys to plough his field near Diplo in the hopes of growing some cluster beans in the event that it rained.
“Thar region during the monsoon season needs around 300mm of rainfall with intervals of 10 to 15 days for crop cultivation and for the growth of the wild herbs, grasses and other vegetation,” explained Javed Ahmed Samoo, a resident of Malsaryo village in the Nagarparkar taluka.
Samoo added that the hilly town of Nagarparkar and other areas of Parkar this year started receiving heavy rain in late June and it was still raining, so he was expecting a good yield for the crop planted in late June and July.
After the heavy downpours, the Karoonjhar Hills have become a hub of seasonal tourism and people are thronging here from across the country to see the beautiful foothills, the ancient Jain temples and other picnic points, according to Dileep Parmar, a resident and well-known local photographer.
Sindh Culture and Tourism Minister Syed Sardar Ali Shah, who is also the focal person on rain emergency in Thar, said Diplo and the barrage areas of Kaloi were badly affected due to rainwater-caused flooding but on the bright side, the district’s drought is over and there are lush green pastures and sandy dunes locally called ‘bhitts’.
“We have tried our level best to promote and preserve historical sites in Thar and have opened resorts including the Rooplo Kolhi resort near Nagarparkar to provide lodging, food and other required facilities to those touring this region,” he said. The government is ready to install a chairlift at the foothills of Karoonjhar if it gets clearance from security forces, since the area falls near the Indian border, he said.
Despite the threat of COVID-19, they allowed tourism in Thar provided certain SOPs are followed, Shah said. He estimated that several thousand people were still visiting Gaddi Bhitt in Mithi and other picnic points.
According to data collected from the DC Office in Mithi, Diplo received little over 530mm of rainfall followed by Mithi which got 507mm so far. The hilly town of Nagarparkar received over 400mm so far. Islamkot has received nearly 340mm while Chhachhro and Dahli talukas received 267mm and 240mm respectively.
Parts of Kaloi taluka received 220mm of rainfall. The area has been hit by flash floods due to breaches in drains and people have been forced to take shelter in the sandy dunes near its barrage areas. Hundreds of the people have moved to Thar with their cattle in search of fodder from the marooned areas of Badin, Mirpurkhas, Sujawal, Umerkot, Tando Mohammad Khan and other districts.
All photos provided by the author
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