Climate crisis, human impact turning Thar desert green: Study

Once known for its barren landscapes and sparse vegetation, the Thar Desert is undergoing a remarkable transformation driven by a combination of changing climatic patterns and sustained human interventions, according to a new satellite-based study.

- Dinesh Bothra

JODHPUR:

The study conducted by professor Vimal Mishra from the department of civil engineering at IIT, Gandhinagar, Hiren Solanki from IIT, along with Ramakrishna Nemani from the Bay Area Environmental Research Institute at NASA Research Park, US, revealed that there has been a rise of 38% in mean annual greenness in the Thar desert between 2001 and 2023. "This increase is attributed to a 64% surge in rainfall — particularly from the summer monsoon — and intensive use of groundwater through tubewells and canal irrigation," it stated.

According to the researchers, the Thar is now the only major desert in the world witnessing a simultaneous increase in population, precipitation, and vegetation over the past two decades. The research paper titled "Greening of the Thar Desert driven by climate change and human interventions" was recently published in the Cell Reports Sustainability journal.