A total of 1.5 million people died of starvation in the seven famines that occurred in the first half of the 19th century. In the second half, there were 24 famines (6 between 1851 and 1875 and 18 between 1876 and 1900) leaving over 20 million dead.
These are official figures. Actual figures could be many times more. Romesh Dutt writes: "Deaths were numerous and were never reckoned... Hundreds of thousands died in obscure villages, unknown and unheeded. The dead lay on the road side unburied and unburnt, till they were devoured by wild animals."
Incredible as it may seem, the export of food grains during this period showed a remarkable increase! The revenue from the export of food grains, principally rice and wheat, rose from £ 858,000 in 1849 to £3.8 million by 1858, £ 7.9 million by 1877, £9.3 million by 1901 and £19.3 million in 1914.
There was never a time when the entire country was under the grip of famine. Famines were regional occurrences. When the rains failed in Bengal, Bombay Presidency had a rich harvest. When North India was reeling under the impact of famine, the South was thriving.
Why then did people die like flies, in hundreds and thousands? Could foodgrains not have been moved from one region to another and human lives saved?
Romesh Dutt writes : "If the people were generally in a prosperous condition, they could make up for local failure of crops by purchases from neighbouring provinces, and there would be no loss of life. But when the people are absolutely resourceless, they cannot buy from surrounding tracts, and they perish in hundreds of thousands, or in millions, whenever there is a local failure of crops."
With the wilful and total destruction of village industries like spinning and weaving and excessive taxation, the people had no savings to fall back on during unexpected calamities like famines.

While the government did come out with a famine relief package, no one took these measures seriously. That the government was not serious about the famine relief work, was borne out by the fact that the land tax collection went on as usual. That the cultivators had to mortgage or even sell part of their lands to pay revenue, did not trouble the government officials. To them, the target set for the year was more important than the hardships of the poor farmers.