India’s growing climate crisis is now impossible to overlook. A new Climate Risk Index by Germanwatch ranks India ninth among the countries most severely affected by extreme weather in the last 30 years. In this period, the country saw nearly 430 extreme events, including heat waves, floods, storms, and landslides, causing losses of about US $170 billion, affecting 1.3 billion people, and taking more than 80,000 lives. These numbers show how widespread and repeated the damage has been, especially for people with the fewest resources.
This year’s study by the Centre for Science and Environment paints an even more alarming picture. India faced extreme weather on 270 out of 273 days between January and September 2025. These events killed 4,064 people, damaged almost 1 lakh houses, affected close to 9.5 million hectares of crops, and killed around 59,000 animals. States like Himachal Pradesh saw extreme weather on 80% of the days, while Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Jharkhand reported the most deaths. The pattern is clear: the poor and vulnerable continue to face the worst impacts, while their ability to recover keeps shrinking.
A big reason for this worsening situation is weak and inconsistent government planning. Poor drainage, unchecked construction in fragile areas, shrinking forests and wetlands, and limited investment in rural infrastructure all make disasters more severe. Farmers struggle because crop insurance payouts are delayed or inadequate. Workers suffer during heat waves because they lack shade, rest breaks, or safety rules. Families lose homes because affordable, disaster-resilient housing is still not a priority. India’s response remains focused on relief after disasters, instead of preparing people and places to withstand them.
As India asks for more adaptation funding at COP30, it must also fix gaps at home. Climate change is no longer a distant threat; it is shaping daily life across the country. But it is not affecting everyone equally. The poorest communities are losing lives, homes, crops, and livelihoods again and again. Climate impacts are severe, but the scale of suffering is made worse by policy failures that need urgent correction.
– Team CFA
