On June 23, the Union agriculture ministry issued a warning regarding a deficient monsoon, flagging 315 districts across the country as at risk. While this was aimed at the farm sector, repercussions of El Nino-induced disruption to the monsoon can ripple out far beyond farmlands.
Reduced agricultural yields translate into higher food inflation, reduced rural incomes and increased dependence on irrigation. At the same time, water reservoirs decline, groundwater extraction rises and pressure on energy systems intensifies. But agriculture is only the beginning of a much larger economic chain reaction.
