being deeply impacted. 2013 Maharashtra drought In March 2013, according to Union Agriculture Ministry, over 11,801 villages in Maharashtra were declared drought affected. The drought was considered the second worst to date, exceeded only by the drought in Maharashtra in 1972. Other issues Deaths from malnutrition on a large scale have continued across India into modern times. In Maharashtra alone, for example, there were around 45,000 childhood deaths due to mild or severe malnutrition in 2009, according to the Times of India. Another Times of India report in 2010 has stated that 50% of childhood deaths in India are attributable to malnutrition. Growing export prices, the melting of the Himalayan glaciers due to global warming, changes in rainfall, and temperatures are issues affecting India. If agricultural production does not remain above the population growth rate, there are indications that a return to the pre-independence famine days is a likelihood. People from various walks of life, such as social activist Vandana Shiva and researcher Dan Banik, agree that famines and the resulting large-scale loss of life from starvation have been eliminated after Indian independence in 1947. However, Shiva warned in 2002 that famines are making a comeback and government inaction would mean they would reach the scale seen in the Horn of Africa in three or four years. See also Drought in India Great Famine (Ireland) List of famines Timeline of major famines in India prior to 1765 Timeline of major famines in India during British rule References Footnotes Citations Works cited Further reading Brewis, Georgina. "'Fill Full the Mouth of Famine': Voluntary Action in Famine Relief in India 1896–1901," Modern Asian Studies, (July 2010) 44#4 pp 887–918 Sami, Leela. "Starvation, Disease and Death: Explaining Famine Mortality in Madras 1876–1878," Social History of Medicine, (December 2011) 24#3 pp 700–719 External links Chronological compilation of historical source material on Indian famines 1500 to 1767 As crops rot, millions go hungry in India Rotting grain has deprived food to 80 mn people Famines in British India Famines in Asia