Letter to the Editor
Dear Sir,
El Niño Exposes Policy Inertia
With the IMD predicting a grim 90% of Long Period Average rainfall and an 84% combined probability of below normal or deficient precipitation India’s passive approach to climate resilience is alarming.
The Agriculture Ministry has already identified 12 states including Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu that face relatively severe threats across 326 vulnerable districts.
A potential Super El Niño breaching +2.0°C directly jeopardises our 50% rain fed agricultural zone yet policy responses remain slow and reactionary. Relying blindly on a highly uncertain positive Indian Ocean Dipole to rescue our economy is a dangerous gamble. When a poor monsoon acts as the true finance minister triggering food inflation and draining critical reservoirs mere planning is a soft antidote.
One should urgently demand mandatory groundwater rationing aggressive crop diversification and immediate infrastructure overhauls in these high risk states.
Dr.Vijaykumar H K, T-6-327 colony, Shaktinagar, Raichur -584170
