New Delhi, Oct. 5 -- Two recent warnings deserve to be read together. Chief economic advisor V. Anantha Nageswaran has cautioned that the second half of this fiscal year will be tougher, despite first-quarter GDP growth of 7.8%.

At the Asia Society in New York, India's external affairs minister S. Jaishankar highlighted pressures on four 'F's-food, fuel, fertilizer and finance-and warned of a possible food crisis. American tariffs on Indian exports, oil above $110 a barrel and global monetary tightening are making the external environment less accommodating.

Domestic challenges compound these shocks. Deficient monsoon rainfall threatens agricultural output, food-price stability and rural incomes. The absence of remunerative job growth d...