Indian Famine Codes
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The Indian Famine Codes, developed by the colonial British in the 1880s, were one of the earliest famine scales. The Famine Codes defined three levels of food insecurity: near-scarcity, scarcity, and famine. "Scarcity" was defined as three successive years of crop failure, crop yields of one-third or one-half normal, and large populations in distress. "Famine" further included a rise in food prices above 140% of "normal", the movement of people in search of food, and widespread mortality.
Further reading
- L. Brennan, ‘The development of the India Famine Codes: personalities, policies and politics’, in B. Currey and G. Hugo (eds), Famine as a geographical phenomenon (1984)
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