Abstract

Tharparkar is one of the poorest districts of Sindh province and one of the fertile deserts of the world. Long before the inception of Pakistan; droughts; famine; and poverty were the salient features of parched Thar. The economy of Thar is referred to as 'gambling on the monsoon;' revolving around livestock; small agricultural income; and handicrafts. During the 1950s; colonisation of Badin district with the construction of Ghulam Muhammad Barrage; the Jumrao canal system; and the encroachment of gowcher lands dwindled the lifestyle of Thar dwellers by depleting pasture lands. Thar Desert receives around one trillion litres of rain annually; sufficient to cater to the domestic needs of Thar dwellers and animals for three years. Thar coalfield was discovered in 1991 and is the sixth largest coal reserve in the world; ranking Pakistan seventh among the top twenty lignite-coal possessing countries. This paper gives an overview of the crisis of governance in the bureaucratic circles concerning Tharparkar.