In a significant policy shift, heatwave has been formally added to India’s list of nationally notified disasters, granting state governments full access to disaster response and mitigation funds for heat-related relief and prevention, a long-standing demand of impacted groups, people, communities, civil society groups, public health advocates and several state governments.
In response to a Lok Sabha question raised by Shri Anoop Pradhan Valmiki on whether the Government would declare heatwaves a ‘natural disaster’ under the National Disaster Management Act.
Until now, heatwaves fell outside the Disaster Management Act’s notified disaster list, which covered only 12 categories: cyclone, drought, earthquake, fire, flood, tsunami, hailstorm, landslide, avalanche, cloudburst, pest attack, and frost/cold wave. As a result, states could draw on only up to 10% of their annual State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) allocation for heatwave relief, under the restrictive “local disaster” provision, an arrangement widely looked as inadequate given the rising frequency, intensity, impacts and death toll of heatwaves across India.
“Unlocking disaster funds is a critical victory, but money on paper needs to reach the person collapsing on the pavement. We cannot measure heat disasters by thermometer readings alone. We must measure them by human toll: missed wages, heat-stroke emergency visits, and daily income lost for outdoor workers who simply cannot work in 45-degree heat. The financial burden of this crisis cannot fall solely on public coffers. It is time to expand the pool of adaptation funds by making the polluters pay; holding the major fossil fuel corporations driving global temperatures accountable for the heat crisis they created,” said Aakiz Farooq, Senior Campaigner, Greenpeace India.
Greenpeace India calls for legally mandated funding for Heat Action Plans, stronger social protection for informal and outdoor workers through heat risk insurance and income loss compensation, and greater investment in community cooling infrastructure and locally led heat response. We also urge the Government of India to establish effective cross-government coordination for implementing heat resilience measures and to champion international climate finance at UNFCCC negotiations by holding Global North countries accountable for their unmet obligations. In line with the principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC), India should support progressive environmental taxation on the profits of major global oil and gas companies to help finance heat adaptation, resilience, and a just transition in the Global South.
Sources: Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2541, answered 4 August 2026; 16th Finance Commission recommendations (2026–31); Ministry of Home Affairs notified disaster list.