Climate Chaos - Monsoon fails and severe drought affects large areas around Gwalior
ManASVI
Status: Currently seeking donations
A farmer, Chhaturi village - there is a drought in central Madhaya Pradesh and Autumn crops are lost. Rural people are suddenly much poorer.
Once it went without question - on a day, in the last week of June, the wind would freshen. It would blow cool, carrying the smell of wet mud. The sky darkened and the rain would start - very heavily! People ran outside and onto roof tops to bask in the downpour while children danced and sang.
The joy was not just at the end of several months of dry baking heat, but also because the rain was an event well prepared for. The kharif, or autumn crops were already sown and waiting. For people in cities and country alike the rain brings food, but more so for rural people. They have no other way of obtaining their food and rely on what they grow to live throughout the year.
I have used the past tense because this year, for the fifth year in succession in central Madhya Pradesh, the rain has been late and sparse. This year it has been later than ever, the first rain in Gwalior not falling until August. Village people, who are devoutly religious, pray. We know the reason for climate change is global warming. For these villagers, who have made no contribution to the problem, the options are stark. They can wait for Government relief for as long as their village reserves and water hold out. If relief fails to arrive in time they will take their wives and children to the city where they will join the throngs of the destitute searching for work.
Donations to ManASVI willsupport rural clinics, an essential safety net for rural health. We will also help families in desperate need.