Economic Impact

• In India, agriculture accounts for approximately 70 percent of employment and 20 percent of GDP. Farmers are highly dependent on monsoon rains. If the rains come even two weeks late, harvests become adversely affected. A weak monsoon or drought causes widespread hardship and affects the entire Indian economy, as food prices rise and domestic purchasing power is reduced. A shortage of rainfall also may cause a reduction in hydroelectric production, which has an adverse effect on all economic sectors. Particularly strong rains may bring floods, and damage crops and infrastructure.
  
  

Water Supply

• The monsoon brings 80 percent of India's annual rainfall. By the time the hot summer months arrive prior to monsoon, water can become quite scarce throughout much of the country. A healthy monsoon refills underground aquifers, lakes and reservoirs. Even in the best of circumstances, many people in India face daily difficulty acquiring adequate water. A weak monsoon can leave entire regions in extremes of water scarcity.
  
  

Health Effects

• When a weak monsoon causes food and water scarcity, people suffer. The change in weather and rainfall also brings an increase in diseases. Dengue fever and malaria increase during and after monsoon. Both diseases are transmitted by mosquitoes, which proliferate because of the abundant standing water. Monsoon brings an increase in viral fever and bacterial diseases. Many localities in India have poor drainage systems, resulting in flooding during heavy rains. Localized flooding may leave people exposed to dirty standing water, which serves as a breeding ground for bacteria and other disease vectors.
  
  

Extreme Flooding

• Occasionally, particularly heavy rains lead to large-scale or even catastrophic floods. In 2004, a dam burst in the kingdom of Bhutan. Millions of people were left homeless, with the state of Assam being affected the worst. In 2005, more than 1,000 people were killed in floods and landslides. In 2008, more than a million people were left homeless, and 250,000 homes destroyed after the Kosi river in Nepal burst its banks. Flood waters rushed down the eastern flank of the Himalayas and flooded a significant portion of the state of Bihar.