Annual area burnt by wildfires gwis in India

India: Annual area burnt by wildfires gwis was 5.30 million in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
5.30 million
Change on year
up 53.1%
World rank
15th
of 225 countries
All-time high
6.79 million
in 2021
All-time low
2.09 million
in 2002
Years of data
24
2002–2025

Annual area burnt by wildfires gwis in India, 2002–2025

2.0M3.0M4.0M5.0M6.0M7.0M2002201320252002: 2.1M2003: 2.9M2004: 4.0M2005: 3.4M2006: 3.1M2007: 3.8M2008: 3.4M2009: 5.6M2010: 4.8M2011: 4.4M2012: 6.0M2013: 4.6M2014: 4.4M2015: 3.9M2016: 5.2M2017: 5.2M2018: 5.5M2019: 4.8M2020: 4.5M2021: 6.8M2022: 5.7M2023: 4.0M2024: 3.5M2025: 5.3M

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

India recorded 5.30 million for annual area burnt by wildfires gwis in 2025.

The figure is up 53.1% on the previous year and up 37.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires gwis in India peaked at 6.79 million in 2021 and was at its lowest, 2.09 million, in 2002.

India ranks 15th of 225 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.

Annual area burnt by wildfires gwis in India, year by year

Annual values for Annual area burnt by wildfires gwis in India, 2002 to 2025.
Year Value Change
2002 2.09 million —
2003 2.86 million +36.9%
2004 4.03 million +40.8%
2005 3.36 million -16.6%
2006 3.06 million -9.0%
2007 3.77 million +23.4%
2008 3.44 million -8.7%
2009 5.64 million +63.8%
2010 4.83 million -14.3%
2011 4.35 million -10.0%
2012 5.98 million +37.4%
2013 4.58 million -23.4%
2014 4.35 million -5.0%
2015 3.86 million -11.3%
2016 5.22 million +35.2%
2017 5.18 million -0.8%
2018 5.54 million +7.1%
2019 4.83 million -12.9%
2020 4.53 million -6.2%
2021 6.79 million +49.8%
2022 5.72 million -15.7%
2023 4.05 million -29.3%
2024 3.46 million -14.5%
2025 5.30 million +53.1%

India compared with similar countries

  • India's 5.30 million is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 283,554, 18.7× the median. (46 countries reporting)
  • India's 5.30 million is above the median for South Asia, which is 152,816, 34.7× the median. (5 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 3.53 million 2.09 million 5.64 million 8
2010s 4.87 million 3.86 million 5.98 million 10
2020s 4.97 million 3.46 million 6.79 million 6

Countries ranked near India

  1. 12 Nigeria 6.52 million compare
  2. 13 Chad 6.35 million compare
  3. 14 Russia 5.34 million compare
  4. 16 Myanmar 4.88 million compare
  5. 17 Canada 4.42 million compare
  6. 18 Ethiopia 4.36 million compare

See the full ranking of 225 places →

More reference data data for India

All data for India →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual area burnt by wildfires gwis in India?
Annual area burnt by wildfires gwis in India was 5.30 million in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest annual area burnt by wildfires gwis recorded in India?
The highest recorded value was 6.79 million in 2021.
What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires gwis recorded in India?
The lowest recorded value was 2.09 million in 2002.
How does India rank for annual area burnt by wildfires gwis?
India ranks 15th out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
Is annual area burnt by wildfires gwis rising or falling in India?
Over the last ten years it is up 37.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this India data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Annual area burnt by wildfires gwis. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Annual area burnt by wildfires gwis in India. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 13 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/annual-area-burnt-by-wildfires-gwis/india/

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About this data

Indicator
Annual area burnt by wildfires gwis
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
225 places, 5,400 data points, 2002–2025
Last refreshed