Major HS Kalsi’s Baalnoi Academy

Delhi/Jaipur
Deserts of India

 Deserts are arid regions with little or no vegetation and exceptionally high
or low temperatures.
 Deserts can be either hot or chilly depending on the climate. Wherever there is
little water available for cultivation, people inhibit those areas and practice
agriculture.
 The majority of experts concur that a desert is any region of land with annual
precipitation totals of less than 25 cm (10 inches).
 It is one of the main ecosystems on Earth and is home to a variety of unique plants
and animals that have evolved to survive in harsh environments.

Thar Desert of India

 The Great Indian Desert, also known as the Thar Desert, is a sizable and dry
region in the Indian subcontinent’s northwest.
 It constitutes a natural border between India and Pakistan and spans an area of
around 200,000 sq km.
 About 85% of the Thar Desert is in India, and the remaining 15% is in
Pakistan.
 The Thar Desert makes up roughly 4.56% of India’s total land area.
 The Rann of Kutch along the western coast, the alluvial plains of the Indus River
in the northwest, Punjab and Haryana to the north, and the Aravali Hills in the
northeast make up the Great Indian Desert.

Location and Extent

 Location – To the north-west of the Aravali hills.
 It covers Western Rajasthan and extends to the adjacent parts of Pakistan.

Geological History and Features

 Most of the arid plain was under the sea from Permo-Carboniferous Period and
later it was uplifted during the Pleistocene Age.
 This can be corroborated by the evidence available at wood fossils park at Aakal
and marine deposits around Brahmsar, near Jaisalmer (The approximate age of
the wood fossils is estimated to be 180 million years).
 The presence of dry beds of rivers (eg Saraswati) indicates that the region was
once fertile.
 Geologically, the desert area is a part of peninsular plateau region but on the
surface, it looks like an aggregational plain.
Thar Desert Characteristics
 The desert proper is called the Marusthali (dead land) as this region has an arid
climate with low vegetation cover. In general, the Eastern part of the Marushthali
is rocky, while its western part is covered by shifting sand dunes.
 Bagar: Bagar refers to the semi-desert area which is west of Aravallis. Bagar has
a thin layer of sand. It is drained by Luni in the south whereas the northern section
has a number of salt lakes.
 The Rajasthan Bagar region has a number of short seasonal streams which
originate from the Aravallis. These streams support agriculture in some fertile
patches called Rohi.
 Even the most important river ‘Luni’ is a seasonal stream. The Luni originates in
the Pushkar valley of the Aravalli Range, near Ajmer and flows towards the
southwest into the Rann of Kutch.
 The region north of Luni is known as the Thali or sandy plain.
 There are some streams which disappear after flowing for some distance and
present a typical case of inland drainage by joining a lake or playa e.g. the
Sambhar Lake. The lakes and the playas have brackish water which is the main
source of obtaining salt.
 The Thar Desert contains a number of protected areas. A few of them are:
 Desert Natural Park
 Desert Natural Park has an area of about 3162 sq km.
 It has 44 towns and one of the largest Thar Desert ecosystems, as well as a
variety of flora and wildlife.

 Tal Chhapar Sanctuary

 The Churu district is home to the 7 sq km Tal Chhapar Sanctuary.
 A sizable population of foxes, blackbuck, partridge, and other animals
reside in the refuge.

 Sundha Mata Conservation Reserve

 The 117.49 sq km Sundha Mata Conservation Reserve is situated in the
Jalore District.
Features of Thar Desert of India

Thar Desert Topography

 The soil of the Great Indian Desert is subject to wind erosion and is perpetually
dry.
 Strong winds move off of the desert at high speeds, depositing some of it near
agricultural fields.
 In the desert, these strong winds generate shifting sand dunes.
 Water for the Thar Desert is provided by canals like the Indira Gandhi Canal.
Additionally, these canals stop the desert from encroaching into arable land.
 Additionally, the desert cannot extend to fertile places because of these canals.
 The Great Indian Desert’s soil erodes easily from the wind and is perpetually dry.
Winds that blow at high speeds deposit some of the dust they carry onto nearby
productive regions.
 Sand dunes in the desert are moving as a result of these strong winds.
Thar Desert Flora and Fauna
 Fauna
There is a diverse range of flora and fauna in the Thar Desert. Here are a few
examples of fauna:
 Blackbuck  Sand Grouse
 Wolf  Leopard
 Indian Wild Ass  Caracal
 Red Fox  Asiatic Wild Cat
 Chinkara  Peacock
 Flora
 Herbaceous species are grown in the area including:
 Cactus  Khejri
 Neem  Acacia Nilotica
 All of these plants can adapt to extremes in temperature and unfavourable
environmental circumstances.
Ladakh and Spiti: The Trans-Himalayan Cold Desert
 The Cold Desert Cultural Landscape of India is situated in the Himalayas and
stretches from Ladakh (J&K) in the north to Kinnaur (H.P.) in the south.
 The region constitutes a Cold Desert biome with harsh climatic conditions,
which can be attributed to two factors:
 One is its location on the leeward side of the Himalayas, which makes it
a rain-shadow zone inaccessible to the annual south eastern monsoon
winds that sweep the rest of the country, thus creating desert conditions with
low levels of precipitation.
 Second is its very high elevation (ranging from 3000 – 5000m ASL)
that adds to the coldness in its environment.

 A huge seasonal variation is seen in the climatic conditions, ranging from short
and dry summers with harsh sunlight (max temperature reaching upto 36˚C
during the day) to long, windy and freezing winters (min temperature touching -
32˚C at night).
 Blizzards, snowstorms and avalanches are common.
 The soil is not very fertile and the climatic conditions allow very short growing
seasons making it a bare landscape.
 Water resources are minimal and comprise glacier-fed streams.
 The settlements are small, isolated, sparsely populated and their planning a
testament to the harsh terrain and environment.
 The population belongs predominantly to the Indo-Mongoloid (Tibetan)
race with some parts of western Ladakh occupied by the Dards, who are
intermediaries of Ladakhis and Baltis of the neighbouring Baltistan in Pakistan
occupied Kashmir (PoK).
 Two distinct regions of human habitation and culture can be distinguished within
this cold desert, namely:
 The Leh-Kargil areas of Ladakh (J&K)
 Spiti Valley (HP)

Historical background of Ladakh

 Ladakh (‘land of the passes’) is one of the most elevated (2,900 m to 5,900 m
msl), and coldest regions (from -30°C to -70°C) of the earth.
 Its topography is barren and population sparse inhabited along the river banks of
different valleys namely Indus, Nubra, Changthang, Zanskar and Suru.
 The mean annual precipitation is less than 50 mm, received mostly in the form of
snowfall during winters.
 The region faces fast blowing winds 40-60 km/hr mainly in the afternoon hours.
 The soil moisture remains frozen during winters and with low relative humidity
during the summer months.
 Despite such inhospitable conditions for survival, it is postulated that Ladakh
has been occupied by humans since pre-historic times, as evidenced in the
discovery of Lower Palaeolithic tools, Petroglyphs and other pre-historic art
works that mark the beginning of man’s interaction with this cold desert
landscape.

Historical background of Spiti

 Spiti, is known as the ‘middle country’ that lies between Tibet and India.
 Throughout history, it kept changing hands among the various kingdoms of Tibet,
Ladakh, Kinnaur, Lahaul and Kullu.
 Subjugated to successive attacks and influences, many a times the rulers had to
pay attributes to one another to keep peace in the region.
 The archaeological records substantiate that the original inhabitants in these
regions were also pastoral nomads who braved harsh climatic conditions of all
sorts. For protection, they defied the natural forces and elements, and began to
worship them.
 It is believed that this is how the Naga Cult (cult of snake worship) and others
came into existence that revolve around the worship of natural features as tree,
rivers, sun, moon et al.
 The river Spiti originates at the base of the Kunzam range and flows eastward
to join the Sutlej at Khab in Kinnaur.
 The inhabitants are largely dependent on agriculture, wild resources such as
Droh, Gandam (Triticumaestivum), Neh, Jau (Hordeum himalayense) and
medicinal plants for their livelihood.

Cultural and Natural Heritage

 Almost all settlements in the property are associated with Buddhist
monasteries known as Gompas with a trademark prayer flag fluttering on top.
 people’s cultural life and have influenced their religious beliefs for centuries.
 The architecture of the region is an interesting amalgamation of Indian and
Tibetan influences, and monastic buildings reflect a deeply Buddhist approach.
 Many rare and special varieties of flora and fauna are found here so much so
that many national parks and wildlife reserves have been declared here by the
Government for their protection.
 Furthermore, the Cold Desert has been declared as the 16th Biosphere Reserve
of India in 2009 that includes Pin Valley National Park and surroundings,
Chandratal and Sarchu, and the Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary in H.P.
 The Changtang Cold Desert Wildlife Sanctuary in district Leh, J&K is another
protected habitat for flora and fauna in the region.
 The region is home to a number of endangered species, including the snow
leopard, Himalayan brown bear, and Tibetan wolf, as well as a range of
unique plant species.
Forests and Vegetation
 In this region vegetation is sparse. There are scanty patches of
grasses and shrubs.
 Groves of willows and poplars are seen in the valleys, a cold desert.
 During the summers, fruit trees such as apples, apricots and walnuts bloom.
 Several species of birds like Robins, redstarts, Tibetan snowcock, raven and
hoopoe are seen in Ladakh.
 The animals of Ladakh are wild goats, wild sheep, and yak.
 These animals are reared to provide for the milk, meat and hides.

Kutch Desert
 Kutch Desert covers a vast area of 45,612 sq km and is bounded to the north
and northwest by Sindh (Pakistan), west and southwest by the Arabian Sea, and
to the northeast by Rajasthan.
 The Rann of Kutch comprises a unique example of Holocene sedimentation.
 It covers a large tract of 23,000 sq km and has been arbitrarily divided into two
parts namely the:
 Great Rann
 Little Rann
 Kutch furnishes an interesting example of four diverse geomorphic type of
terrain namely:
 The Rann  The hilly region
 The low lying Banni plains  The coastal plains
 It is connected to the Arabian Sea through Kori Creek in the west and the Gulf
of Kachchh in the east, and is very close to sea level.
 The Wild Ass Wildlife Sanctuary, situated in the Indian state of Gujarat, is the
largest wildlife sanctuary in the country. It is spread in the entire area of the
little Rann of Kutch where small grass-covered areas, known as baits, forms
the flora and is an important source to support the fauna of the region.
 The Rann (Hindi word for desert) was originally part of the Arabian Sea, until
a geological rising of the seabed disconnected it from the sea, forming a vast lake
whose lower reaches gradually dried up, leaving a salty marshland.
 The desert is submerged under water during the monsoon season, which makes
it a breeding ground for flamingoes, the India wild ass, and several other exotic
birds and wildlife.
 White Desert in Kutch, also known as the Great Rann of Kutch, is located in
western Gujarat.

Difference Between Hot and Cold Desert