You have always come across the question “Write an essay or paragraph on Drought” so your quest ends here. Here you will find the best samples essay on Drought in English for class 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 school students.
500+ Words Essay on Drought
Drought is a natural calamity where, even for the essential needs, there is a shortage of water everywhere. People in many countries are suffering from drought and others are losing their lives because of the lack of water that contributes to food shortages. The effect of drought is terrible, and the affected country often has trouble returning to a healthy state.
In some areas, starvation, as a result of drought, leads to the death of several people. Drought also affects the production of crops, causes forest fires and leads to insufficient electricity production.
Drought can be very dangerous for the farmers because much of the crop does not mature and has some adverse effects. There are artificial irrigation methods and water storage options, but not all farmers have access to such facilities.
Causes of Drought
The principal explanation for drought is the lack of rain. If the usually falling rain fails for a couple of months, then water shortage occurs. Wells get dry, and people and other living beings begin travelling in search of water from one location to another.
Though the leading cause of drought is lack of rainfall, some other factors contribute to such a situation too. They are:
Deforestation – Trees are the principal source of rainfall. When we cut the trees to build houses, we not only kill vegetation and greenery but also eliminate the primary source of rainfall from the Earth.
Draining of Surface Water – The rivers, lakes, and ponds are the natural ways by which water is collected on Earth. Activities such as excessive irrigation, improper use of water for agricultural purposes removes the surface water from these natural reservoirs and creates a condition known as drought. Growing temperature due to global warming also allows water to drain.
India is a land that is dependent on monsoon rainfall for water adequacy. Consequently, insufficient rainfall in most parts of the world is considered to be the primary cause of the drought.
Again, global warming has contributed to changes in natural climatic conditions and higher temperatures; it has also had a significant impact on India’s monsoon season.
Also, high sea temperatures have resulted in the El Nino impact that has further influenced the monsoon season’s onset. All these factors, together with unsuitable agricultural practices and increased levels of pollution, have together contributed to a decline in monsoon rainfall that has led to a drought.
Consequences of Drought
Loss of Biodiversity – Drought adversely affects the environment. Biodiversity disruption and depletion occur during drought when animals of many species die from lack of water and food. Living objects such as trees and plants die, too. Diseases also grow during drought seasons which affect living things and cause death. Rare species are usually endangered during drought seasons.
Loss of wildlife – Drought severely affects the health of both animals and plants. Drought effects cause diseases such as dehydration and malnutrition, which weaken humans and plants alike. Extreme malnutrition of humans and animals leads to their death.
Loss to the Economy – The economic losses suffered during drought are also significant. Drought causes plants to die and deteriorate, thereby reducing the economic, agricultural production. Food production costs will increase, and water economic activities such as tourism and energy production will be reduced.
Heavy loss to farmers – India’s agriculture sector is the most vulnerable to climate conditions. Much of India’s agriculture relies on both rainfall and groundwater. “Drought” like situation has tremendously affected the farming sector and animal husbandry in India. The scorching sun sucks the groundwater and becomes fatal to the cattle.
Soil Degradation – Continuous drought can cause the soil to lose its humidity and fertility. At many areas where there is no rain, we can see that the lands would have cracks on them. After several years of rain, some areas recover their fertile soil, but some fully lose their ability to produce crops.
Drought Management
There are some ways in which we can try to manage or solve the problem of drought. They are:
We can implement the techniques of afforestation. We can use methods of rainwater harvesting to conserve and store rainwater and use it in emergencies such as drought.
The waste water would need to be stored, filtered and reused. The thus stored water can be used for watering plants, and can also be used for irrigation.
Conclusion
The drought issue is very severe, and there are plenty of different provinces in India that are being greatly affected. People at large must realize that time calls for some strict steps to be taken as soon as possible.
There is a growing need for steps to be put in place to save India’s regions from drought. One of the Government’s main plans in this regard is to connect rivers.
If we can connect the rivers, then we can redirect excess rivers from the region to the areas affected by drought and save them from this disaster. Another important step is to have proper irrigation systems in place, so that water can only be used as often as needed.
Besides, water extraction via tube wells and other sources should be checked in as this leads to a drop in the water table that triggers the onset of drought.
It is not the duty of the government alone to have measures in place to prevent regions from suffering from drought; we should all ensure that we conserve as much water as possible and obey the rules laid down by the Government.
We can also do rainwater harvesting to store the water that nature provides us with that will be beneficial in times of difficulty. In mitigating if not avoiding the situation as adverse as drought, a joint effort by everyone will be of benefit.
Drought has immense implications, but this is not the end. If each of us contributes their share in environmental protection, so other hazards such as drought can be handled very easily.
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