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Objective: To asses the impact of drought on nutritional status of adults of a rural population in desert area. Design: Three-stage sampling technique. Setting: 24 villages belonging to 6 tehsils (sub units of district) of Jodhpur district, a drought affected desert district of Western Rajasthan, in 2003. Subjects: 1540 adults were examined for their anthropometry, dietary intake and nutritional deficiency signs. Results: Overall chronic energy deficiency (CED) was found high (42.7 %). Severe CED was 10.7 percent, significantly higher in males than females. Regarding vitamin A deficiency, overall prevalence of Bitot spot and night blindness was 1.8 and 0.2 percent respectively, higher in females than males. Regarding vitamin B complex deficiency, angular stomatitis, cheliosis, and glossitis was 1.0, 2.6 and 5.4 percent. Anemia was 35.6 percent. Overall mean calorie and protein intake deficit was very high (38 & 16.4 %). The comparison of present drought results with earlier studies in desert normal and desert drought conditions showed higher deficiencies of calories and proteins in their diet. Conclusions: Severity of malnutrition is critical as CED was more than the cut-off point of 40 percent stated by World Health Organization. Vitamin A and B complex deficiencies, anemia, protein calorie malnutrition along with deficit in calories and proteins in their diet were higher in comparison to non desert areas, which may be due to the harsh environmental conditions in desert areas. Efforts should be made to incorporate intervention measures to ensure the supply of adequate calories and proteins to all age groups.