…monsoons are relied upon throughout the
country to provide water for growing crops.
heavy monsoons, however, can bring floods that
often have a high death toll. these floods have
been exacerbated [made worse] by deforestation
of the hills for industrial and agricultural
purposes. it is a fine balance between having
plenty of water to flood the rice fields and having
too much so that crops, homes, and even lives are
lost. the alternative to the floods may be famines.
however, india’s infrastructure can now deal
successfully with these: when the monsoon fails
in one area, the army is able to move supplies to
the drought-stricken area. as a result of this
organization, few lives were lost in the
maharashtra famines of 1965–66 and 1974–75,
while more than two million people died in the
bengal famine of 1943.
—louise nicholson, national geographic traveler:
india, 2007
based on this passage, how have the negative
effects of the monsoons been reduced in recent
years?
(1) the army is building dams to hold back the
floods.
(2) farmers have begun to grow crops that
require less water.
(3) home construction in flood areas has been
controlled by government regulations.
(4) an improved infrastructure makes it possible
to bring supplies to areas in need of