The Jojari River is a seasonal watercourse in

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

, India. It primarily carries surplus rainwater from the hills near Poondloo village in

Nagaur district Nagaur District is one of the 41 districts of the state of Rajasthan in western India. Panchayati Raj was introduced here. It is the fifth largest district in Rajasthan and the area of the district is . The city of Nagaur is the district head ...

. Flowing in a north-east to south-west direction, it gathers water from multiple smaller streams along its path, ultimately converging with the

Luni River The Luni is the largest river in the Thar Desert in Northwest India. It originates in Naga hills of the Pushkar valley of the Aravalli Range, near Ajmer, passes through the southeastern portion of the Thar Desert, and ends in the marshy lands of ...

near Khejalda Khurd in

Jodhpur district Jodhpur district () is a district in the State of Rajasthan in western India. The city of Jodhpur is the administrative headquarters of the district. As of the 2011 census, it is the second highest populated district of Rajasthan (out of 33), ...

. This river is a tributary of

Luni river The Luni is the largest river in the Thar Desert in Northwest India. It originates in Naga hills of the Pushkar valley of the Aravalli Range, near Ajmer, passes through the southeastern portion of the Thar Desert, and ends in the marshy lands of ...

. This river has become heavily polluted due to inflow of industrial and domestic waste with toxic chemicals, including

sulfur Sulfur ( American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphur ( Commonwealth spelling) is a chemical element; it has symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms ...

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

, and

cadmium Cadmium is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, silvery-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12 element, group 12, zinc and mercury (element), mercury. Like z ...

, primarily from untreated effluents discharged by Boranada’s textile and chemical industries. Additional pollution from untreated sewage has further degraded water quality, rendering the river toxic, destroying ecosystems, and impacting the health and livelihoods of approximately 1.6 million people living along its banks.

Pollution crisis

The river is severely polluted by untreated industrial waste from over 700 Boranada factories, releasing

, and other chemicals. Untreated sewage from villages like Doli and Dhava adds to the contamination. The river’s toxic water has destroyed ecosystems, killed wildlife, and rendered 100-150 km of farmland barren, with a 2024 study detecting heavy metals like

, and

in food grains. Health issues, including

respiratory The respiratory system (also respiratory apparatus, ventilatory system) is a biological system consisting of specific organs and structures used for gas exchange in animals and plants. The anatomy and physiology that make this happen varies gr ...

and skin ailments, plague locals, and groundwater contamination threatens 1.6 million people. Villages like Melba face exodus due to unlivable conditions. The

Rajasthan government The Government of Rajasthan is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Rajasthan and its 41 districts. It consists of an executive branch, led by the governor of Rajasthan, as well as judiciary and legislative branches. Jaipur ...

allocated ₹176 crore in 2025-26, following ₹400 crore in 2023 and ₹172.58 crore in 2024, but weak enforcement, misdirected funds, and political disputes have stalled progress. Despite NGT orders and 73 factory closures since 2019, illegal dumping persists. Geocycle’s 2024 cleanup plan lacks clear impact. As of 2025, the river remains toxic, requiring stricter regulations, upgraded treatment plants, and transparent fund use to restore it.

References

{{reflist Rivers of Rajasthan Water pollution in India