‎Drought is a phenomenon that comes under geography in the strict sense of the word but has reverberations across various fields. This is because droughts affect the livelihood and economies and even lives of people affected by it.

Types of Drought

There are three types of droughts known to the scientific community:

Meteorological drought occurs when there is a prolonged time with less than average precipitation. Such type of droughts can be triggered by a high level of reflected sunlight and above-average prevalence of high-pressure systems, winds carrying continental, rather than oceanic air masses.

Agricultural droughts affect crop production or the ecology of the range. This condition can also arise independently from any change in precipitation levels when either increased irrigation or soil conditions and erosion triggered by poorly planned agricultural activities cause a shortfall in water available to the crops.

Hydrological drought is brought about when the water reserves available in sources such as aquifers, lakes and reservoirs fall below a locally significant threshold. Hydrological drought tends to show up more slowly because it involves stored water that is used but not replenished. Like an agricultural drought, this can be triggered by more than just a loss of rainfall.

Socio-Economic Drought refers to the abnormal water shortage that affects socio economic condition of a region.