The global cost of disasters is growing: The economic burden of disasters is intensifying. While the direct costs of disasters averaged $70–80 billion a year between 1970 and 2000, between 2001 and 2020 these annual costs grew significantly to $180–200 billion. But the real cost is far higher. Disaster costs …
parts of Rajasthan are in the grip of a severe drought and the situation may worsen further. Over 2.5 crore people and 3.5 crore animals have already been affected. According to a report prepared by the government of Rajasthan: "Bunds and tanks are almost empty. The groundwater level has gone …
several political parties have demanded that south Haryana should be declared "drought-hit' and have asked for adequate compensation to the affected farmers for the loss incurred due to water shortage. They have even threatened to intensify their agitation. According to reports, standing crops in Rohtak, Sonepat, Rewari, Jhajjar, Gurgaon and …
a drought in the Kashmir valley has caught the government unawares. Usually susceptible to floods, the catastrophic management of this area has always focussed on floods. According to the state agriculture department, out of a total 165,000 hectares (ha) under paddy cultivation in the valley, 60,000 ha have been affected …
Coffee plantation owners in Brazil heaved a sigh of relief after the much-awaited spring showers lashed the parched country. The showers came after days of prolonged drought, which had hit the country's coffee belt and was threatening to cause heavy losses in the coming season, said Cooxupe, a leading cooperative …
The United Nations Children's Fund (unicef), in a drive against polio in Pakistan, will provide a high potency vitamin for children under five years. The aim of the programme is to eliminate one aspect of "hidden hunger' in the country, within a year. The initial policy decision was taken in …
THE drought which hit the us recently may extend to the next year, John Kelly, director, National Weather Service has said. Dan Glickman, agriculture secretary, has declared Connecticut "a farm disaster area' and has issued similar declarations for 19 counties in Maryland, six additional counties in Virginia and one in …
The wildebeest population at Serengeti National Park, has not recovered from a drought that killed 25 per cent of the herd five years ago. Scientists, monitoring the population dynamics of the migratory wildebeest in Serengeti, northern Tanzania, say recent data confirm that the population of the animals, had stabilised at …
from Virginia to Massachusetts, extending even as far west as Ohio, exceptionally dry weather conditions threaten eastern United States with drought. The National Weather Service has blamed the stagnant high-pressure system over the south-eastern part of the country for the lack of rain this summer. Conditions were no better last …
Meteorologists have warned that the current drought in Uganda is likely to worsen in the coming months and called on the government to formulate a strategy to cushion the country against its effects. Principal meteorologist Abushen Wamubi Majugu said: "The drought will become severe. What is required now is information …
if the drought-like situation persists in Tripura, there is a danger of the state facing a famine. Three members of a tribal family at Wakhiraipara in west Tripura have already committed suicide as they could not cope with hunger. Rabindra Debbarma, general secretary of Tripura Upajati Juba Samiti ( tujs …
Urban dwellers spend 80 per cent to 90 per cent of their time indoors in an environment that is dangerous to their health, according to Cui Jiusi, a Beijing environmental scientist. Cui, director of the Air Quality Monitoring Laboratory under the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, recently cited health dangers …
A major rice variety in Bangladesh is being threatened by drought. "Our hopes for a quick agricultural recovery after last year's devastating floods have been threatened by prolonged dry weather that may badly affect the yield of Boro, a major rice variety,' said Qazi Shahabuddin Ahmed of the Bangladesh Institute …
A gene that controls drought tolerance in plants has been identified. Scientists say that they may soon produce genetically engineered plants capable of surviving droughts. The gene was identified by scientists working at the University of Toronto, Canada. The gene controls a plant hormone that triggers closure of pores on …
The South Pacific island of Fiji is suffering from a massive drought. The sugarcane crop of 1998 is well below normal production. Even the torrential rains due to La Nina, which lashed Australia, have stayed away from Fiji. "We were hoping that La Nina could come and bring some rain …
Water supplies in a drought-stricken province in central Vietnam are running out fast, triggering growing fears of health hazards. Quang Tri province has already appealed for emergency aid as it struggles with its worst water crisis in more than a century. Tens of thousands of people are at risk from …
The Philippine government is compelled to take major steps to ease poverty and unemployment in the drought-stricken Southeast Asian region. The farm sector, which analysts say has been neglected by administrators in the past, is reeling under drought conditions propelled by the El Nino phenomenon and is desperately in need …
FARMERS in the us are having a hard time as they have lost million of dollars following a catastrophic drought. According to reports, the blistering heat has killed more than 130 people across the southern parts of the us. The heat wave shows no sign of abating and the impact …
Millions of people in Sudan are facing starvation following an outbreak of famine in the country. Aid agencies had warned just four months back about the impending famine in southern Sudan. A United Nations (UN) projection showed that about 1.2 million people are in danger of death from hunger across …
About two million people would be extended water rationing till September amidst depleting dam levels. Mohammed Shariff Jajang, chairperson of the Selangor state information committee, says that production at the main Langat and Semenyih dams is presently maintained at about 70 per cent of the normal level. "The current rationing …
Millions of families are facing acute food shortages and malnutrition, says a report of the World Food Programme ( wfp ), and the Food and Agriculture Organisation ( fao ). The crisis is expected to worsen in coming months for about 200 million people in the country. A severe drought, …
