India's Growth Outstrips Crops
Wednesday, September 17, 2008 at 2:42AM ARTICLE: "India's Growth Outstrips Crops: Green Revolution Fades in Nation of 1 Billion," by Somini Sengupta, New York Times, 22 June 2008, p. A1.
India just barely grows enough cereals that it's a net exporter—by a kernel.
Problems that loom?
Green Rev is tapped. Arable land is second only to U.S., but given latitude, India will suffer mightily with global warming.
Then there's the economic growth fueling more caloric intake, and the population growth not quite slowing to a crawl.
Mostly small farms, mostly rain fed, with plenty of inflation thanks to "shining India" and its tremendous trajectory. Groundwater getting depleted. Debts leading to epidemic of suicides. Not a pretty picture.
Second Green Rev called for.
Do you wonder why India's so open to bio-engineered improvements in seeds?
India's interdependence with the global economy will skyrocket on this basis. God help us if we don't have India very locked in by that point in a Core that's moved past an equity focus on resources.
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