Saturday, September 5, 2009

Drought in India, Part II

Jim Yardley reports on the front page of this morning's Times (here) about the drought in India. Rainfall is down 25%; although the monsoons have finally arrived in some areas, Yardley says they are too late to save many crops.

Yardley says that Manmohan Singh's government (which was reelected in the spring (my post is here)) is now challenged with creating a second "green revolution." India's first green revolution occurred in the 1960's, when high-yield seeds, fertilizers, and irrigation led to significant increases in grain output.

In the second green revolution, a major focus will need to be on preserving groundwater supplies. It sounds as though India -- like many parts of the world -- will need to focus more energy and money on the water issue in the coming years.
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The photograph is from the Times story and is by Keith Bedford.