When the Empire Watched Millions Die: The Forgotten Famine of 1876–78
Today, I want to invite you on a journey, not through time to a glorious past, but into a much darker, more devastating chapter of colonial history. We're going to delve into the shadows of the late 19th century, when a catastrophic famine swept across vast regions of South India : The Great Famine of 1876–78 in Colonial India. A Catastrophe Underestimated: Why Revisit the Great Famine Today? Between 1876 and 1878, a catastrophic famine swept through vast regions of Colonial India – particularly the Madras and Bombay Presidencies, as well as the princely states of Mysore and Hyderabad. The human cost was staggering, with an estimated 5.5 to 10 million deaths. So, why revisit this calamity today? Why pull this dark memory from the archives? Because understanding how colonial systems created famines amid plenty can illuminate the underlying structures of present-day disasters. We live in a world grappling with rising food insecurity, intensifying climate shocks, an...