Jodhpur is the 16th largest Hindi speaking city of India with a total population of 1 million. Rajasthani is also spoken in this area. Highest employment in Jodhpur district is in Agriculture, Government, Handicrafts, Tourism and the Construction industry. Jodhpur has 56% Agricultural workers, 41% government and other workers and 3% household workers. Jodhpur is a good agricultural district, its terrain being very suitable for Mathania red chili cultivation. Jodhpur district is located on 250-300 meters of height from the sea level. The district includes some of the Thar Desert area as well. Jodhpur district has no perennial rivers; the important rivers of the district are Luni and Mithril. The history of Jodhpur is believed to have started from Stone Age. Fossils of early Stone Age have been found on the banks of Luni River. Instruments of Neolithic age have been found in Luni, Pipar, Pichiyak, Shikarpur etc whereas remnants of old age have been found in places near Bilara. In the ancient period, the region around Jodhpur was called as MeruDesh and was later on known as Marwar. Jodhpur had been the empire of the Rajput rulers of Parihar, Chauhan and Rathore dynasties. The city was founded in 1459 by Rao Jodha, a Rajput chief of the Rathore clan and was located on the strategic road linking Delhi to Gujarat. This enabled the region to profit from a flourishing trade in opium, copper, silk, sandals, date palm and coffee. During the British Raj, the state of Jodhpur had the largest land area in the Rajputana Province.
