India Faces Criticism for Cutting Climate Adaptation Fund Amid Rising Disasters

NEW DELHI_ India is facing growing criticism from climate experts, activists, and vulnerable communities after government records revealed that the National Adaptation Fund on Climate Change (NAFCC) has received zero budget allocation for the past two consecutive years. The revelation comes as climate-linked floods, landslides, heatwaves, and coastal erosion continue to devastate millions across the country.

According to official data, India, one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable nations, has witnessed a dramatic spike in internal displacement. Between 2015 and 2024, more than 32 million people were displaced, while 5.4 million faced displacement last year alone. By the first half of 2025, over 160,000 people had already been forced to relocate due to heavy flooding and landslides.

Climate Disasters Intensify Across India

In the Reasi district of Indian-administered Kashmir, intense rainfall triggered a massive landslide on September 2, destroying nearly 20 homes and forcing families into temporary shelters. Survivors report losing everything within minutes.

Floods in Bihar’s Darbhanga district displaced thousands, with residents reporting repeated evacuations every monsoon. Coastal communities in Odisha continue to lose land to rising sea levels, and fishermen have been forced to migrate as their livelihoods collapse. In the southern state of Tamil Nadu, saltwater intrusion has destroyed agricultural fields, threatening food security and local income. Mountainous regions such as Himachal Pradesh are witnessing unprecedented cloudbursts and landslides, wiping out hotels, shops, and homes within seconds.

National Adaptation Fund: From Hope to Neglect

Launched in 2015, the National Adaptation Fund was intended to support projects that helped communities withstand climate impacts such as droughts, floods, sea-level rise, and water scarcity.

In its early years, the fund received over $13 million annually and supported dozens of adaptation initiatives across India. But by 2022–23, the allocation dropped drastically. In November 2022, the fund was downgraded from a “scheme” to a “non-scheme” category. By 2023–24 and 2024–25, it received no funding at all.

Environmental activists argue that the government has deprioritized climate adaptation.
“They have abandoned the most vulnerable communities,” said activist Raja Muzaffar Bhat. “The gap between policy and reality is widening dangerously.”

Contradiction at COP30

Ironically, while India slashes domestic funding, it has been urging the world to prioritize climate adaptation at COP30 in Brazil. India’s environment minister called for a 15-fold increase in global adaptation financing, arguing that developing countries face the harshest climate impacts.

Experts see a contradiction between India’s international posture and its domestic inaction.

“India is making strong statements abroad while doing the opposite at home,”

 said a senior climate researcher.

The Human Cost of Policy Inaction

Across India, communities are struggling without sufficient adaptation support. Families in Kashmir say they have nowhere to rebuild. Fishermen in coastal Odisha have migrated to other states. Farmers in Tamil Nadu warn that land degradation may force them to abandon agriculture entirely. With worsening climate conditions, India is expected to see up to 45 million internal climate migrants by 2050, according to Climate Action Network South Asia.