India is currently facing a rise in disasters. The record-breaking heatwaves of 2024, with temperatures in parts of Rajasthan exceeding 50 °C, served as a stark warning of the extremes ahead. Cyclones Asna and Fengal caused widespread damage along the coasts, while Himalayan states endured snowstorms, flash floods, landslides, and the looming threat of glacial lake outbursts.
The year 2025 has proven to be equally harsh. Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh have experienced unexpected cloudbursts, slope failures, and swiftly retreating glaciers that continue to destabilise fragile mountain ecosystems. Himachal Pradesh, specifically, faced repeated cloudbursts and flash floods that ravaged communities. At the beginning of August, the Himalayan village of Dharali was ravaged by a devastating flood, believed to have been caused by a glacial lake outburst.
Just weeks later, a sudden cloudburst in Kishtwar, Jammu and Kashmir, unleashed torrents of water that devastated houses, livelihoods, and lives.
These calamities are no longer isolated shocks but part of a systemic crisis. They are driven by a changing climate, reckless development in vulnerable areas, and most significantly, the degradation of natural buffers. Among the strongest of these natural buffers are forests — living systems that regulate rainfall, stabilise slopes, store carbon, and shield vulnerable communities from the worst impacts of climate extremes.