BAHAWALPUR: The Derawar Fort, a large square fortress and visible for many miles in the Cholistan desert, was built by Rai Jajja Bhatti, a Rajput ruler of the Bhatti clan, was built in the 9th century AD as a tribute to Rawal Deoraj Bhatti, a sovereign king of the Jaisalmer and Bahawalpur areas who had his capital at Lodhruva.
The fort was initially known as Dera Rawal, and later referred to as Dera Rawar, which with the passage of time came to be pronounced Derawar, its present name. This historically-significant fort presents an enormous and impressive structure in the heart of the Cholistan desert, but it is rapidly deteriorating and in need of immediate measures for preservation.
The fort’s name included in the Tentative List, an inventory of important heritage and natural sites that a country is considering for inscription on the World Heritage List thereby becoming the World Heritage Sites of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). The inclusion on the Tentative List is a prerequisite to being considered for inscription within a five- to 10-year period.
