Forest fires — Burned Area in India
India: Forest fires — Burned Area was 523,649 ha in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Forest fires — Burned Area in India, 1990–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in ha.
Analysis
India recorded 523,649 ha for forest fires — burned area in 2024.
The figure is up 2.6% on the previous year and down 35.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest fires — burned area in India peaked at 1.80 million ha in 2021 and was at its lowest, 104,509 ha, in 2002.
That places India 11th out of 219 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Forest fires — Burned Area in India, year by year
| Year | ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 704,704 ha | — |
| 1991 | 704,704 ha | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 704,704 ha | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 704,704 ha | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 704,704 ha | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 704,704 ha | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 136,753 ha | -80.6% |
| 1997 | 117,405 ha | -14.1% |
| 1998 | 119,386 ha | +1.7% |
| 1999 | 248,786 ha | +108.4% |
| 2000 | 141,073 ha | -43.3% |
| 2001 | 151,230 ha | +7.2% |
| 2002 | 104,509 ha | -30.9% |
| 2003 | 525,936 ha | +403.2% |
| 2004 | 848,867 ha | +61.4% |
| 2005 | 513,296 ha | -39.5% |
| 2006 | 561,363 ha | +9.4% |
| 2007 | 919,387 ha | +63.8% |
| 2008 | 531,619 ha | -42.2% |
| 2009 | 1.73 million ha | +224.7% |
| 2010 | 1.41 million ha | -18.3% |
| 2011 | 707,469 ha | -49.9% |
| 2012 | 1.68 million ha | +137.4% |
| 2013 | 992,717 ha | -40.9% |
| 2014 | 807,028 ha | -18.7% |
| 2015 | 591,311 ha | -26.7% |
| 2016 | 786,841 ha | +33.1% |
| 2017 | 1.25 million ha | +58.6% |
| 2018 | 1.04 million ha | -16.5% |
| 2019 | 619,917 ha | -40.5% |
| 2020 | 315,536 ha | -49.1% |
| 2021 | 1.80 million ha | +471.4% |
| 2022 | 752,774 ha | -58.2% |
| 2023 | 510,448 ha | -32.2% |
| 2024 | 523,649 ha | +2.6% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 523,649 ha is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1,929 ha, 271.5× the median. (41 countries reporting)
- India's 523,649 ha is above the median for South Asia, which is 19,356 ha, 27.1× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Forest fires — Burned Area in India changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | +471.4% | 315,536 ha | 1.80 million ha |
| 2003 | +403.2% | 104,509 ha | 525,936 ha |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 485,055 ha | 117,405 ha | 704,704 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 602,353 ha | 104,509 ha | 1.73 million ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 988,515 ha | 591,311 ha | 1.68 million ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 781,081 ha | 315,536 ha | 1.80 million ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near India
- 8 Russian Federation 723,318 ha compare
- 8 Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) 316,286 ha compare
- 9 Canada 717,855 ha compare
- 10 Mexico 557,291 ha compare
- 10 Viet Nam 77,644 ha compare
- 11 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 10,553 ha compare
- 12 Cambodia 470,662 ha compare
- 12 Melanesia 8,913 ha compare
- 13 Nepal 363,091 ha compare
- 13 Türkiye 2,750 ha compare
- 14 Thailand 362,523 ha compare
- 14 Timor-Leste 171.01 ha compare
More climate change data for India
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 27.69 billion kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 602,760 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 105,678 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 497,082 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 398.78 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 17,753 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 279,594 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 176,015 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 103,578 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 664.21 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest fires — burned area in India?
- Forest fires — burned area in India was 523,649 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest forest fires — burned area recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 1.80 million ha in 2021.
- What is the lowest forest fires — burned area recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 104,509 ha in 2002.
- How does India rank for forest fires — burned area?
- India ranks 11th out of 219 countries with data for 2024.
- Is forest fires — burned area rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 35.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Forest fires — Burned Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The FAOSTAT domain on Emissions from Fires consists of estimates of methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions generated from biomass burning in a range of vegetation types and from fires in organic soils.