India, a nation of over a billion people, sits at the epicenter of the global climate crisis. Its unique geography and vast population make it more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change than any other country, according to Mongabay-India. Throughout 2025, the country faced a barrage of extreme weather events—floods, heatwaves, and droughts—that laid bare the urgency for policy action and societal resilience.
The year began with a poignant loss for India’s scientific community. Professor Sulochana Gadgil, a trailblazer in atmospheric science and a pioneer in computational modeling, passed away in July 2025. Her research, especially a 2006 collaboration with her son Siddhartha Gadgil, remains deeply relevant. The mother-son duo analyzed fifty years of rainfall and agricultural data, discovering an unexpected pattern: while drought years predictably reduced agricultural output and GDP, years of excess rainfall didn’t boost the economy as one might hope. Instead, floods brought crop loss and economic downturn. Their findings echo loudly in 2025, a year marked by monsoon excess and widespread devastation.
India’s southwest monsoon, spanning June through September, delivered 7.9% more rainfall than the 1971-2020 average. The northeast monsoon, beginning in October, saw 55% of districts drenched in excess rain, with another 25% experiencing normal levels. These statistics, reported by Mongabay-India, would seem promising for agriculture—if only the rain had come gently. Instead, relentless downpours in the western Himalayas swelled the Beas, Sutlej, Raavi, and Ghaggar rivers. Authorities had to release water from the Bhakra, Pong, and Ranjit Sagar dams, flooding 23 districts of Punjab and laying waste to paddy fields and other crops.
Even Maharashtra’s Marathwada region, typically parched, wasn’t spared. Receiving 128% of its long-term average rainfall, Marathwada was inundated in short, destructive bursts. Crops, livestock, and infrastructure suffered heavily. July brought further floods to Assam and Mizoram in the northeast. According to Mongabay-India, these extreme events are increasingly linked to warming in the Arabian Sea, which has surpassed the cyclogenesis temperature threshold and now spawns more severe weather during the monsoon season.
But it’s not just water that threatens India’s most vulnerable. Heatwaves have become a silent, creeping menace, disproportionately impacting marginalized communities. The numbers are stark: heatstroke death rates may reach as high as 64%. One story, followed by Mongabay-India’s Simrin Sirur, tells of Devi Prasad Ahirwar, a Delhi ATM security guard who survived a near-fatal heatstroke—only to be left unable to work or speak clearly. His family, already struggling, was pushed to the brink by medical expenses. Research cited by Mongabay-India found that marginalized castes suffer more from heatstroke, as their economic circumstances force them into outdoor labor.
The effects of heat stress ripple through society. Aishwarya Tripathi’s reporting from Odisha revealed that people with spinal cord injuries endure two to three times more heat stress than others. Meanwhile, the nomadic Raika pastoralists of Rajasthan, forced off farmlands by development, now migrate along roads, exposing themselves and their animals to greater heat. Disabled individuals, Mongabay-India notes, are routinely overlooked in disaster management plans, leaving them especially vulnerable during heatwaves.
Climate change’s health impacts extend beyond heat. As food production falters and prices rise, undernutrition becomes more common—making people more susceptible to diseases like tuberculosis. Diabetes, already widespread in India, is exacerbated by the challenges of maintaining diet and exercise routines during heatwaves and floods. The Tamil Nadu State Planning Commission found that by 2023, 74% of residents faced uncomfortable heat levels, a figure echoed by researchers at the Madras School of Economics.
On the policy front, 2025 was a year of contradiction. India’s official coastline grew by 47%—from 7,516 to 11,084 kilometers—thanks to improved measurement techniques. This might seem like a technical footnote, but it has real implications for coastal management and disaster preparedness. The Supreme Court of India took a stand in May, banning post-facto environmental clearances for projects—a practice the court called “illegal and harmful.” Yet, by November, this order was rolled back under pressure from industry groups. In September, the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change exempted critical and atomic mineral mining projects from public review, further weakening environmental oversight.
Yet, there were bright spots. India reached a significant milestone by achieving 50% of its installed power generation from non-fossil fuel sources, five years ahead of its 2030 target. The country’s progress in climate action planning at the state level has drawn international attention, positioning India as a model for sub-national implementation of climate policies.
At the global level, India played a pivotal leadership role at COP30 in Belém, Brazil. With the United States stepping back from negotiations and Europe preoccupied with the Russia-Ukraine conflict, India—sometimes in partnership with China—stepped into the diplomatic void. Despite these efforts, COP30 closed without a clear roadmap for phasing out fossil fuels or securing climate finance. According to Mongabay-India, India consistently pushed for equity and financial commitments, but the message from Belém (and the previous COP in Baku) was clear: India must raise its own resources for climate mitigation and adaptation.
To that end, discussions are underway to establish a national platform to attract climate finance, with the Reserve Bank of India proposing the pooling of bankable projects. Experts outside government are also suggesting innovative approaches to mobilize both public and private investment. Efforts to standardize climate finance terminology are ongoing, aiming to make the investment landscape more transparent and attractive.
Despite improved scientific understanding since Sulochana Gadgil’s early research in the 1970s, translating knowledge into effective policy remains a challenge. Two late-2025 government decisions—reducing the ecological importance of the Aravallis and remodeling the employment generation act—could have long-lasting consequences for rural resilience and environmental protection.
India’s climate journey is at a crossroads. With each passing year, the need for homegrown solutions becomes more urgent. The country’s vulnerability is matched only by its potential for innovation and leadership. As Mongabay-India concludes, the choices made now will shape the nation’s ability to weather the storms—both literal and metaphorical—of the coming decades.
