Hunger in developing countries

On Hunger in Developing Countries Q1) Amina does not have a proper house to stay in. Her in-laws tried to make her leave the house she was staying in. Further, her brother-in-law tried sold the tin roof of the house and consequently the mud walls of the house gave way when it rained heavily. And when the house collapsed, her child died as a result. Thus, to put it in straight words, Amina does not have a roof over her head.
– She resorted to begging to make a living and to preserve her self respect she did not beg in her own village. The fact that she had to beg represents a disturbing fact.
– She did not have access to credit to make any kind of produce and earn income by selling them.
From a utilitarian point of view, she did not have a house, no income and she was illiterate.
Q2) Brown talks about how the world would add three billion more people by 2050. That is equivalent to adding roughly two and half times the size of Canada’s population every year. According to Brown, the reason for falling food output is the drop in the water table and rising temperatures. This is akin to saying that we are facing “ invisible drought” like situations where a one degree rise in temperature lead to a ten percent drop in the yield of grain.
He details the success of India’s green revolution in the 1960’s the effect of which was to double the yield of wheat and grain output in less than seven years. He adds a caveat stating that though we might have another green revolution, we may not be able to get past the physiological barrier of producing that much more food. We might produce 10 percent or 25 percent more, but as far as producing the kind of food that we would need is concerned, we are up against tough odds. Brown further states that with increasing affluence in China, the world would face the prospect of 1. 3 billion affluent consumers.
Brown compares any kind of solution emerging to the food crisis to that of the fall of the Berlin Wall. No one anticipated that it would be so swift and hence Brown is optimistic that we can find a way in a similar way.
Q3) According to a report in the online version of The Times of India (http://timesofindia. indiatimes. com/India_headed_for_food_shortages/articleshow/2912360. cms), a reputed newspaper in India, the country is heading for a food shortage. This is borne out by the statistics. In 1979, the per capita availability of cereals and grams had gone up to 476. 5 grams per day. In 2006, it was 444. 5 grams per day. In the case of pulses, the story is even worse as the current availability of 32. 5 grams per day is almost half of that was available in 1951. The reason for this low availability is that there is not enough food that is being produced. There has been a fall in the amount of food that is being produced. And given the fact that India went through a green revolution a few decades ago and has turned from a food surplus nation to a food deficit nation. Added to this is the lack of food stock for import from other countries as well. Several experts have noted these twin issues and the government is seized of it as well.
Thus, it can be said that India is facing a shortage of food stock.
Sources
Bhattacharya, Amit. “ India headed for a Food shortage?” Indiatimes on the Web. 31 Mar 2008. 01 Nov 2008.
http://timesofindia. indiatimes. com/India_headed_for_food_shortages/articleshow/2912360. cms