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A new study by Dr K.N. Ninan from the Centre for Economics, Environment and Society published in the Economic and Political Weekly takes the analysis further by showing how climate change will aggravate rural poverty in the future. Using data from the household consumer spending surveys conducted by the National Sample Survey Office, he estimates that climate change will not only increase the population living under poverty but also aggravate the conditions of those living in poverty. According to Dr Ninan, the extent of rural poverty is a function of agricultural productivity and food prices. Agricultural production determines farm incomes, while food prices determine a huge part of the consumption basket of the poor. Climate change, through rising temperatures and increasing precipitation, affects both these factors: decreasing agricultural productivity and increasing food prices. In addition, climate change increases population pressures on land and other environmental resources.