Cholistan Desert Cholistan Desert The Cholistan Desert (; Saraki: ), also locally known as Rohi (), sprawls from Bahawalpur, Punjab, Pakistan and covers an area of . It adjoins the Thar Desert, extending over to Sindh and into India. The word Cholistan is derived from the Turkic word "chol", meaning "desert". The people of Cholistan lead a semi-nomadic life, moving from one place to another in search of water and fodder for their animals. The dry bed of the Hakra River runs through the area, along which many settlements of the Indus Valley Civilization have been found. The desert also hosts an
Thar Desert or man-made (johads), are often the only source of water for animals and humans in the true desert areas. The lack of a constant water supply causes much of the local population to live as nomads. Most human settlements are found near the two seasonal streams of the Karon-Jhar hills. Potable groundwater is also rare in the Thar desert. Supplies are often sour due to dissolved minerals, and are only available deep underground. Wells that successfully bear sweet water attract nearby settlement, but are difficult to dig, possibly claiming the lives of the well-diggers. According to 1980 housing census in