Tharparkar Faces Chronic Droughts

Ali Nawaz Rahimoo

Tharparkar: Tharparkar, located in Sindh province, spans over 22,000 square kilometers with a population of about 1.5 million people living across approximately 2,300 villages and urban settlements. The district is divided into six talukas: Mithi, Islamkot, Chachro, Dhali, Diplo, and Nagarparkar.

Tharparkar has suffered more than 25 droughts between 1968 and 2024, with an average of every third year being a drought year. These recurrent droughts have caused repeated famines. Nearly two-thirds of the population rely on casual labor and credit, which account for 78 percent and 69 percent of total income, respectively, while agriculture and livestock contribute only 8 percent to 25 percent.

Over 80 percent of the population depends on precarious rain-fed agriculture and livestock for their livelihood, with livestock contributing partially or fully to almost every household’s economy. Despite its mineral wealth—coal, china clay, and granite—only about 5 percent of the population has access to safe water.

The 2018 Pakistan National Nutrition Survey (NNS 2018) highlights a high prevalence of malnutrition in Tharparkar, including stunting and wasting among children under five. A double burden of malnutrition exists, with children being both underweight and overweight due to food insecurity and poor nutrition. Food insecurity exacerbates malnutrition, further threatening child health.

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Livestock holds immense importance for the local economy, but close proximity between humans and animals contributes to the spread of zoonotic diseases, especially threatening newborns. There is an urgent need for immunization centers for animals and veterinary services.

Water scarcity is a critical issue.

Many government-installed Reverse Osmosis (RO) plants are non-functional due to maintenance, funding shortages, and tampering, forcing residents to depend on traditional wells or unsafe water sources. Fluoride levels in drinking water reach as high as 32 mg/L, far exceeding the WHO guideline of 1.5 mg/L, causing serious health problems.

Poor access to clean water contributes to waterborne diseases like diarrhea, cholera, and typhoid. Drought-induced food shortages increase malnutrition and child mortality rates. Poverty and social issues have also led to rising mental health problems, including suicide.

Healthcare infrastructure in Tharparkar is weak, with limited facilities, trained personnel, and medicines. Early marriages and teenage pregnancies are common, contributing to maternal and child health problems. Strict enforcement of the Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929 is urgently needed.

The dusty, arid environment makes residents prone to respiratory infections such as pneumonia and tuberculosis. Anemia is widespread among pregnant women, caused by poverty, poor nutrition, inadequate healthcare, and poor sanitation.

Houses in Tharparkar are not designed to cope with extreme weather, marked by significant temperature variations.

The region is highly vulnerable to climate change, which worsens drought and heat stress, making housing improvement essential to prevent related illnesses.

Education faces major challenges, especially for girls, with a literacy rate of only 23 percent. Many villages lack girls’ schools, and overall female literacy in Sindh is just 32 percent. Infrastructure deficiencies include poor electricity access and inadequate roads and transport.

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The climate crisis in Tharparkar demands urgent government intervention.

Priority actions should include improving education quality, vocational training, development of sweet groundwater, installation of desalination plants, and solar water pumps. A comprehensive livestock development strategy is critical, focusing on cross-dairy farming, veterinary care, and pasture improvement to enhance livelihoods.

Healthcare must be strengthened with fully functional Taluka Headquarters (THQ) hospitals, Basic Health Units (BHUs), mobile clinics for remote areas, trained community midwives, and nutrition centers to combat child malnutrition.

Long-term improvements require securing water resources, providing sustainable livelihood alternatives, and expanding access to affordable healthcare and education. These measures will reduce economic vulnerability and improve quality of life, laying the foundation for stable and thriving communities.

However, many challenges in Tharparkar are rooted in entrenched socio-economic structures sustained by feudal traditions, class divisions, and systemic injustice. These barriers limit social mobility and perpetuate poverty.

To bring Sindh into the modern era, the government must confront these deep-rooted issues with bold policy reforms and foster a cultural shift to challenge existing power dynamics. While this will be a slow and complex process, genuine progress requires courage to disrupt the status quo and a commitment to building a just and equitable future for Tharparkar.

The article is the writer’s opinion, it may or may not adhere to the organization’s editorial policy.

The writer is a social development professional based in Umerkot Sindh. He can be contacted on anrahimoo@gmail.com