By Toki Blah
On July 3, 2026, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma inaugurated a workshop titled “Developing State Response for El Niño Preparedness: Strengthening Food and Water Security”. He red flagged an alarming 80% rainfall deficit for the state and described climate change as an “existential crisis”. Out of an average annual rainfall of 12,000mm, Meghalaya has received only 2,400 mm to date. An alarming shortfall of 9,600mm. Conrad is the Chief Minister and he should know what he is talking about. There’s no reason to doubt him. He must also have received official reports on the behaviour of the monsoons and its dreaded adverse impact on agricultural production. He has called for a long term comprehensive action plan to tackle the looming natural disaster. The CM, however, stopped there without naming the specific natural disaster he had in mind. Most probably he did not want to cause undue panic so confined himself only on the El Nino affects. “El Nino” brings in extreme weather shifts; weaker monsoons together with unbearable heat waves. In short what the CM was talking about are symptoms of a forthcoming Drought! Meghalaya has never experienced Drought. The question, therefore, is: Are we prepared for it?
This write up is not to challenge the statement of the CM. Far from it. The Meghalaya Government’s recognition of the danger signals that an 80% rainfall deficit can bring is commendable. With no intention of being presumptuous, the author, as DC of Banda, a drought prone district in UP, Central India, was personally involved in managing one of the worst Bundelkhand droughts that lasted from 1979 to 1981. This write-up aims to share that experience. Drought is a natural disaster with a difference. Others like floods, hailstone, earthquakes or even fires occur suddenly, casualties occur and collateral damage happens in the twinkling of an eye. One is then usually left only with the task of relief disbursement. The onset of drought is different. It does not come with a bang. The calamity creeps with terrifying slowness over the land. The earliest signals of a forthcoming drought is erratic, declining rainfall and unusual higher temperatures (already happening to Meghalaya). Then the moisture in the soil start disappearing resulting in ground too hard to plough, harder to till, too dry for seeds to sprout. This is usually followed by drying and untimely curling and browning of vegetation. Water levels in water bodies begin to recede and shrink. Worst of all, population migration begins. These are the characteristics of a drought. Precursors of a famine perhaps. The question is how prepared is Meghalaya on dealing with this unknown natural calamity?
Drawing from my own experience, there are two ways people approach the onslaught of drought. The first approach advocates passive reaction , by responding to each phase of the drought as and when it happens and hope for the best. This is a knee jerk reaction which can only result in greater confusion amidst the chaos that drought brings along. The second approach is based on a preconceived roadmap on how to manage a drought. It’s unplanned reaction vs planned management. The Meghalaya Government’s approach so far appears to focus on the second approach. Why do I say this? I say it because the victim of any natural disaster is the common man. The ordinary citizen will be completely bewildered and stumped as he sees the failure of nature around him. Panic and confusion will be his initial reaction, which if not handled in the initial phase can lead to serious law and order issues. However, people will tend to maintain their calmness and composure if they are assured by physical evidence or audio devices that the Government is working to help them through the turmoil. Towards this, let me briefly outline what the Government needs to do to assuage public fear while simultaneously appearing to be in control of the situation.
As mentioned above deficit rainfall is the first symptom of drought and it is the agriculturalist who is the first to notice this. Deprived of rain he notices that the crops he has already sown begin to wilt and wither away. The earth will also be too dry for him to plough for his usual rainfed crops. This brings in a paralysis of helplessness and it is the responsibility of the administration to assure the farmer that they are aware of his plight and that they also have a planned solution for his apprehensions. The solution as part of a greater Drought Relief effort is to distribute drought resistant seeds to affected hillside agriculturalists. For hillside rice-growing marginal farmers populating the Meghalayan countryside, drought resistant paddy varieties such as Sahbhagi Dhan and Anjali are suitable. These are not only immune to drought conditions but are short duration crops and they help dissipate the sense of helplessness. Besides the above paddy seeds, our farmers can also be encouraged to go in for other drought resistant varieties such as millets (bajra, jowar, ragi), pulses (chickpea, pigeon pea, moong), and oilseeds (sesame, groundnut, mustard) as the most reliable alternatives. These crops thrive in shallow soils, tolerate erratic rainfall, and provide both food security and income stability to the rural population.
The shrinking of wells, lakes , springs and other water sources will be the next crucial item on the drought menu . The trouble with rural Meghalaya villages is that they are usually hill top habitations, dependant on hillside springs for their water requirements. Once such springs dry up the only remedy is either to shift to some other location or to fetch water from the river far down the hillside. Neither is feasible. So arrangement to supply water by tankers is usually the only solution for such problem areas. For valley and plain rural settlements, bore wells are often the most reliable and instant relivers. Pre drought identification of such problematic settlements would be of great help on planning the management of this disaster. Now aside from making available drinking water, the population also needs to be fed.
As part of the Drought Relief campaign, a rigorous Food-for – Work (FFW) programme also needs to be set up. FFW programes are designed not just to provide immediate sustenance but also to create long‑term, sustainable community assets. The idea is that while people receive food grains for their labour, the work they do strengthens the village’s infrastructure. FFW projects can range from road construction to check-dam construction, farm ponds and tanks, gully plugging and a host of other activities that different Government departments such as PWD, Soil Conservation, Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, PHE etc can identify. An early pre drought format for identification of the works that can be taken up, District or Block wise , would be of immense help in subsequent Relief Work.
Let us now assume we are in the midst of a hectic Drought Relief Programe. FFW and massive water supply activities are busy all over the place . In such a situation, work supervision assumes critical importance. The nature of the exercise undertaken requires supervision at three levels. Firstly at the work site level, a supervisor is needed to ensure proper supervision and measurement of work to ensure equitable payment to the beneficiaries under FFW program. Next required is supervision at the Block level. This level inspects, scrutinises and addresses complaints received from the field. The third level is at the District level under the Chairmanship of the DC. This level coordinates and attends to issues that the other two levels are not able to handle. Addressing complaints and ensuring format observance is the main task at this level. Here one must caution that complaints of resource misuse must be treated as a high-priority task because even a hint of corruption or misuse, if not addressed promptly, can jeopardise the entire operation. Officers and staff will then be engaged more in enquiry duties than on actual relief work. Therefore all such complaints, if proven, are to be nipped in the bud as quickly as possible and punishment to the guilty carried out without delay.
In a drought situation, the press, media, politicians, and their parties, can play both a positive role and a destabilising role. Sensationalising events based on mere gossip can cause a massive disruptive response from a panic stricken public. Reports of starvation deaths can cause an undue uproar even in Parliament and even in the international media. It has been observed that opportunistic politics sometimes create uncalled for situations by claiming that the District has run out of foodgrains. To avoid such disturbances, the DC of any affected district should give weekly press conferences to allay public sentiment. Another trick to assure the public of the availability of food is to stack foodgrain in the open. This can be done by storing such food in the open but under guard in Block HQs. Visual evidence of the availability of food grains leads to public confidence. It helps in avoiding food riots and other acts of public desperation.
