Data: More Than 3000 Humans Lost Their Lives Due to Natural Extreme Events in 2024-25, Most Since 2013-14
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation’s ENVISTATS 2025 puts real numbers behind everyday environmental concerns. The report notes that in 2024-25, extreme natural events claimed 3080 lives, affected 14.24 lakh hectares of crops, destroyed 3,64,124 houses, and killed approximately 61,960 livestock.
Every day, millions of Indians wake up to check the air quality index before stepping outside. We follow news about rainfall, discuss water problems in our neighbourhoods, and notice when parks and trees disappear from our cities. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation’s ENVISTATS 2025 puts real numbers behind these everyday concerns. It gives us the actual data behind what we see and experience daily, from the quality of air we breathe to the health of forests.
With environmental issues getting worse and more people paying attention to these problems, Envistats serves as both a health check-up for the country and a guide for making better choices. These statistics matter because they track the places we live, work, and raise our families. In this story, we look at some of the highlights from the report.
More than 3000 humans lost their lives due to natural extreme events in 2024-25
India’s varied geography and high population density make it especially vulnerable to extreme weather. What were once considered rare, once-in-a-lifetime events are now happening far more often, owing to climate change. Disasters that used to occur very rarely are now seen every few years. These extreme events claimed 3080 lives, affected 14.24 lakh hectares of crops, destroyed 3,64,124 houses, and killed approximately 61,960 livestock in 2024-25.
The human toll has also been significant, with 2013-14 recording the highest number of deaths at 5677 and the provisional figures for 2024-25 also point to a sharp increase, with 3080 deaths reported, the highest since 2013-14.
Chemical Pesticides consumption at 10-year low since 2012-13
With the weather getting more unpredictable, growing crops has become trickier. Farmers use more pesticides to tackle these challenges. Pesticides are basically chemicals that kill bugs, weeds, and plant diseases. Farmers use different ones depending on the crops they grow and the problems they face. A total of 24 states were affected by pests between 2015-16 and 2024-25.
Out of all the pesticides used in India, herbicides make up the biggest share at 44%. Fungicides come second at 27%, while insecticides account for 22%. Bio-pesticides and other types make up the remaining 7%. But using too many chemical pesticides has created problems, from environmental pollution to health risks to people. Because of these issues, the Indian government started Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in 1985. The objective was to control pests while reducing chemical use.
The data from Envistats shows that India used the least amount of pesticides in 2022-23 over the past decade, with just 53.63 thousand tonnes. This was the lowest consumption since 2012-13. In contrast, just a couple of years earlier in 2020-21 and 2019-20, farmers used around 62 thousand tonnes each year, which were the highest amounts since 2001-02.
India has one of the lowest pesticide consumption rates per hectare globally, with only 0.5 kg per hectare annually, while China uses almost 17 kg per hectare. Further, according to data from the Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine and Storage (PPQS), more than half of India’s cultivated area uses chemical pesticides, while bio-pesticides cover less than 10% of the cultivated area. The total share of cultivated area using either chemical or bio-pesticides has decreased from 81% in 2019-20 to 69% in 2023-24. This decline may indicate better pest management practices or a shift towards organic and sustainable farming methods.
However, there is some inconsistency between the pesticide consumption data from Envistats and PPQS, particularly after 2019-20.
Consumption of Biopesticides on the rise
Regular pesticides are man-made chemicals that leave traces in the soil after farmers use them. Organic pesticides come from natural sources like plants, minerals, and bacteria. Neem-based pesticides are made from neem tree extracts. The big difference is that organic and neem pesticides don’t leave chemical traces in crops or soil, while regular chemical pesticides do. Bio-pesticides are also safer because they usually target specific pests without harming other animals, birds, or insects.
More farmers are switching to bio-pesticides because people want cleaner food, and there is growing concern about chemical farming. Bio-pesticides make up only 4.2% of India’s pesticide market, but this is expected to grow by 10% each year.
The data on the consumption of biopesticides/neem-based pesticides shows that there has been a consistent rise in the consumption of biopesticides in India. The consumption has grown from 123 MT in 1994-95 to a highest ever consumption of 9321 MT in 2021-22. However, the consumption declined slightly to 7204 MT in 2022-23 and 7816 MT in 2023-24. This growth is also partly a result of the Integrated Pest Management.
India’s fish production hits record high of 1.84 crore tonnes in 2023-24
As the population keeps growing and climate change creates new challenges, we need to change the way we think about how we produce and eat food. Fishing is an important part of this, since fish provide about 15% of the animal protein people eat around the world. India plays a big role here, being the third-largest fish producer in the world and ranking second in fish farming. The per-capita yearly fish consumption in India stands at 6.31 kg in 2020-21 as per the Handbook of Fisheries sector 2023.
Fish production in India has increased significantly over the years. Earlier, most of the fish came from the sea. But now, nearly 70% comes from inland sources like rivers, ponds, and fish farms. Marine fish production grew from 5.34 lakh metric tonnes (MT) in 1950-51 to 44.95 lakh MT in 2023-24. In the same period, inland fish production rose sharply from 2.18 lakh MT to 139.07 lakh MT.
The growth has been even faster in the last decade. From 2010-11 to 2023-24, inland fish production went up almost three times, from 49.81 lakh MT to 139.07 lakh MT. On the other hand, marine fishing increased by about 1.4 times, from 32.5 lakh MT to 44.95 lakh MT.
However, aquaculture also raises environmental and social concerns. With limited land and water and growing pressure from climate change, the sector faces the key challenge of producing more with fewer resources.