Why it is in the news
On 19 September 2026, Down To Earth reported, on IMD data, that Meghalaya — whose name means “the abode of the clouds” and which contains the two wettest inhabited places on Earth — holds India's highest rainfall deficit of the 2026 monsoon, at 59% below normal as of 15 September 2026. The State has ranked worst among all States since 31 July.
The exam angle
Issue: When the wettest place on Earth records India's largest rainfall deficit within a documented three-decade decline, what does water security mean for a rain-fed, spring-dependent hill economy — and is India's drought machinery designed to see such a case at all?