Severe drought hits Indian farmers

New Delhi, Jun 26: Indian agriculture is predominantly dependent on nature. About 600 million people in India depend upon agriculture for their livelihood. The failure of nature, directly affects the fortunes of the farmers.

The delay in the monsoon turned a nightmare for the Indian farmers this year. Pista Devi, a widow who struggles all day and night to feed her five children says, "If the rains don't come then these fields will remain empty. No one will call us for work and the children will have to go hungry. We won't have anything to eat."

The rain, which is considered the key to crop survival and livelihood for the farmers has affected them drastically as country suffers from rain deficit that is 85 pc below normal.

Devinder Sharma, a food and trade policy analyst said, "65 percent of farmers in India rely on rainwater." He also said, "We have always seen whenever something goes wrong with agriculture the entire economy goes topsy-turvy."

Vijay Pal Sharma, a farmer worried about his family and his village where 90 percent of the 2000 households depend upon on the land. He says, "If the rains do not arrive then people will die of hunger."

Its time for the Indian government to find a solution for the drought affected areas. It should start alternative employment generation programmes to reduce the dependency on agriculture as the sole source of income.

OneIndia News