Showing posts with label Monsoon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Monsoon. Show all posts

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Weak Monsoon Rising Prices

The rising price of essential commodities is one of the major problems this country is facing at present. Before the people could reconcile with the rising price of dals, there came another bolt from the blue. Sugar price rise caused harm to the common man’s pocket before the previous sore could totally heal.

Sugar is one of the main essential commodities in every household. Government comes up speaking about shortage in sugarcane plantation and a weak monsoon, a cause for which the people have to suffer. It is believed, from the account of the Agriculture Minister, to make up the shortage in sugar supply, duty-free white sugar will be imported. Along with it comes the assurance that the price of sugar will remain reasonable.

The coming of the major festivals of this country in a couple of months when sugar will be in demand, it is to be seen how helpful these words of consolation can be?

With very little rainfall this year, this country which depends mostly on a good monsoon for agriculture will no doubt have a tough time ahead. A weak monsoon has hit crops like sugarcane, wheat, paddy and pulses which are the major crops. No doubt this has hit the inflation chart too.


Soaked in the sweat from the heat how can anyone say, “Rain, rain, go away come again…”

Just have to wait and see when the prices have taken a soar will they come down again.

We live with Hope, isn’t it?

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Delhi Heat and Humidity

The first week of July has gone but for Delhi it is still the hot summer days the people of this city are facing. Reeling under heat and humidity, the city’s demand for electricity is demanding. The maximum temperature at this time is above 40 degrees and the minimum crossing the 30 plus mark. There was fluctuation in the humidity level, moving between 70% and 42%. The high humidity level is making life so difficult with a feeling that the temperature is more than recorded by the Met office.

The Met department does not stop with their babble of the monsoon. They make predictions about the coming rains but their words end up with a blank. People’s faith has now revolved on God to whom they pray if not openly but in their hearts for the rains to come and cool this burning earth.

Without the rains and the rising heat and humidity, Delhi’s electricity demand has gone up. If we are to go by information, electricity consumption in this city on Wednesday was 4,408MW, something that Delhi is seeing for the first time. And why not, the air conditioners are running round the clock as most households use AC’s to get respite from the heat. The air coolers are non-effective due to the humidity.

The worse part is some parts of the city is facing power cuts and anger rising. There is no fixed time for power cuts, it may just vanish at any time of the day or night leaving the consumers facing heat and sweat with anger.

Now the only thing that remains is a prayer to the rain God to come and bless all with His downpour.

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Save Water with Rain Water Harvesting

This year the monsoon has been delayed although the Met Department had made early predictions of a not an average but a good Monsoon for this country. Although monsoon has reached some parts of the country, North India is still waiting for the rains to come. This has left the northern part of India with a drought threat.

Delayed rains no doubt have affected the water supply in many cities.
With the rivers and other water bodies drying up it is time for a serious thought about water management. One way of managing this is by Rain Water harvesting. With rising demand for water and the shrinking of the ground water level, rain water harvesting is a ray of hope to re-charge the ground water level to meet people’s demand.

Talking of rain water harvesting, this is not specified to one area like for Delhi or Mumbai only but this has to be a cause related topic for the whole of India.

Going by the meaning of Rain Water harvesting, the common meaning is the need to create methods to capture the rain water. For this it has to be the rainy days when the rain water can be collected by developed methods and can be used later.

With modernisation the faces of towns and cities have changed. Most areas are plastered with concrete leaving no space for the falling rain water to percolate into the soil thus leaving a shrinking ground water level. For this rising water problem, time is ripe enough to make sincere attempt to replenish the rain water in its modern form known as Rain Water Harvesting.

It is time to wake up before its too late and at the same time try to understand and implement this method for the benefit of all.