by Avinash Mendha

Created on: April 18, 2009   Last Updated: April 19, 2009

Drought is a natural hazard, it has slow impact, and it evolves over months or even years. Drought occurs when there is subnormal rainfall, erratic rainfall, or higher water need or combination of all the factors. The impact of increasing population has become a point of concern, especially on food front. The productivity of food is strongly influenced by the varying of monsoon. Drought is mainly due to water shortage in some parts of countries, where there is less rainfall. Which leads to crop failure, shortage of drinking water, unreplenished ground water resources, etc. There are different types of drought as explained below.

Types of Drought:

Meteorological drought :- Occurs due to lack of rainfall. Caused due to hot weather.

Hydrological drought :- Affects water resources. Caused due to stored water supplies.

Agricultural drought :- This form of drought occurs when moisture level in soil is not able to maintain average crop yields, which affects the output of crops. An extreme agricultural drought can lead to famine, which is shortage of food , causing disease and death from starvation.

Socioeconomic drought :- Occurs when the supply of some goods or services are totally dependent on weather then there may be shortage of water and electricity.

Causes of Drought :-

1. Low Rainfall or Inadequate rainfall.

2. Unseasoned Rains.

3. Inadequate water availability, high water loss in storage.

4. Over exploitation of surface and ground water.

5. Shift in agricultural practices.

6. Crop damage due to rain.

7. Higher rate of human and animals.

Impact of Drought :- Impact of drought is mainly on agricultural sector of country. The impact of drought affects the nation's trade and economy as well as food security. The impact is also felt due to land degradation, fall in investment capacity of farmers, rises in prices, and power supply.

Strategies for management of droughts :-

1. Building canals so that farmers have water availability during period of less rainfall.

2. Weather forecast.

3. Making available quality seeds to farmers at low price.

4. Making farmers aware and help them develop strategies for overcoming drought period.

5. To plant more trees to conserve soil.

6. Understanding the causes of drought at local and global level.

7. Developing programs to overcome drought.

With the proper planning and being prepared for drought, our farmers won't be affected immensely. "Together we all can and we will create a difference for our nations".

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