GS Paper 3:
Topics Covered: Conservation related issues.
Context:
The Drought in Numbers, 2022 report was released on May 11 at the ongoing 15th Conference of Parties (CoP15) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
- The latest assessment analysed droughts and impacts on life and livelihood over 122 years covering 196 countries.
Highlights of the Report:
- The frequency and duration of drought is increasing at an alarming rate across the world since the onset of the 21st century.
- An entire new generation is growing up being “water scarce”.
- Since 2000, there has been a 29 per cent increase in frequency and duration of droughts in the world.
- Drought is considered a slow onset disaster, thus giving enough time to prepare for it. But in recent decades, drought has emerged as one of the biggest drivers of human life loss and economic loss among weather-related disasters.
Water scarcity and Drought in India – what the report says?
- India has featured in the assessment as one of severely drought-impacted countries. Nearly two-thirds of the country suffered drought during 2020-2022.
- Geographically, India’s drought vulnerability compares with that of sub-Saharan Africa.
- The effect of severe droughts was estimated to have reduced India’s gross domestic product by 2-5 per cent over the 20 years from 1998-2017.
Concerns for India:
- India’s drought-prone area has increased by 57 per cent since 1997.
- One-third of India’s districts have faced more than four droughts over the past decade and 50 million people are affected by drought every year.
- Some 97.85 million hectares — nearly 30 per cent of the country’s land — underwent land degradation during 2018-19.
- Drought impacts India’s dominantly rainfed agriculture that accounts for 60 per cent of the sown area on average.
Do you want to know more about Droughts, its causes and effects?
- Go through this mindmap.
InstaLinks:
Prelims Link:
- About UNCCD.
- Reports.
- Desertification in India.
- Droughts in India.
Mains Link:
Discuss the impacts of frequent droughts on Indian Economy.
Sources: down to Earth.
