Annual number of wildfires in India

India: Annual number of wildfires was 13,557 wildfires in 2026. ▼ Falling

Latest (2026)
13,557 wildfires
Change on year
down 11.1%
World rank
5th
of 248 countries
All-time high
33,767 wildfires
in 2021
All-time low
12,935 wildfires
in 2024
Years of data
15
2012–2026

Annual number of wildfires in India, 2012–2026

010.0k20.0k30.0k2012201920262012: 24.8k wildfires2013: 18.6k wildfires2014: 20.2k wildfires2015: 17.6k wildfires2016: 26.3k wildfires2017: 22.7k wildfires2018: 23.1k wildfires2019: 20.4k wildfires2020: 17.5k wildfires2021: 33.8k wildfires2022: 25.6k wildfires2023: 18.2k wildfires2024: 12.9k wildfires2025: 15.3k wildfires2026: 13.6k wildfires

Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in wildfires.

Analysis

The most recent figure for annual number of wildfires in India is 13,557 wildfires, measured in 2026.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 11.1% on the previous year and down 48.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual number of wildfires in India peaked at 33,767 wildfires in 2021 and was at its lowest, 12,935 wildfires, in 2024.

That places India 5th out of 248 countries with data for 2026, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 21,711 wildfires 17,607 wildfires 26,275 wildfires 8
2020s 19,535 wildfires 12,935 wildfires 33,767 wildfires 7

Countries ranked near India

  1. 2 Angola 28,133 wildfires compare
  2. 3 Australia 20,782 wildfires compare
  3. 4 South Sudan 14,468 wildfires compare
  4. 6 Zambia 13,090 wildfires compare
  5. 7 Central African Republic 12,765 wildfires compare
  6. 8 Myanmar 11,674 wildfires compare

See the full ranking of 248 places →

More reference data data for India

All data for India →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual number of wildfires in India?
Annual number of wildfires in India was 13,557 wildfires in 2026, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest annual number of wildfires recorded in India?
The highest recorded value was 33,767 wildfires in 2021.
What is the lowest annual number of wildfires recorded in India?
The lowest recorded value was 12,935 wildfires in 2024.
How does India rank for annual number of wildfires?
India ranks 5th out of 248 countries with data for 2026.
Is annual number of wildfires rising or falling in India?
Over the last ten years it is down 48.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this India data come from?
The figures come from Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual number of wildfires. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Annual number of wildfires
Unit
wildfires
Source
Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
248 places, 3,720 data points, 2012–2026
Last refreshed

Number of wildfires. The 2026 data is incomplete and was last updated 07 August 2026.