With high heat a notified calamity, States have a new financial shield
Heatwaves and lightning have been formally added to the list of notified natural calamities, expanding it from 12 to 14 categories
The addition follows a recommendation of the 16th Finance Commission for the 2026-31 award period, and enables states to access the full State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and, where needed, the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) for heatwave-related relief, compensation, and rehabilitation
Previously, heatwaves were treated only as a "local disaster," restricting states to spending up to 10% of their annual SDRF allocation on such events
Between March and July 2026, close to 4,900 heatstroke cases and about 20 confirmed heatstroke deaths were recorded across states, with Telangana, West Bengal, and Chhattisgarh reporting the highest case counts
States have been urged to strengthen heat action planning and implementation capacity to effectively utilise the expanded funding
Notified Natural Calamities and the SDRF-NDRF Framework
India's disaster relief financing operates on a two-tier fund structure created under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. Only calamities on the Union government's notified list qualify for full access to these funds; anything outside the list is treated as a "local disaster," for which states can use only a capped share of their own fund. Adding heatwaves and lightning to this list removes that cap and unlocks central assistance.
Key Details
- The State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) is constituted under Section 48(1)(a) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and is the primary fund available to states for immediate relief in notified disasters
- The National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), also under the Act, supplements the SDRF when a state's own fund is inadequate to meet the cost of relief for a notified, generally severe, disaster
- The original notified list of 12 calamities comprised cyclone, drought, earthquake, fire, flood, tsunami, hailstorm, landslide, avalanche, cloudburst, pest attack, and frost/cold wave; heatwave and lightning are the newest additions, taking the list to 14
- SDRF funds can be used only to meet the expenditure of providing immediate relief to those affected by a notified disaster, not for long-term reconstruction
By moving heatwaves and lightning from the restricted "local disaster" category into the full notified list, states no longer face the 10% SDRF spending ceiling for heat-related relief and can additionally draw on the NDRF if their own funds are exhausted.
Centre-State Funding Pattern for Disaster Relief
The SDRF is jointly funded by the Union and state governments in a fixed ratio, while the NDRF is entirely Union-funded — a structure that reflects India's cooperative federalism approach to disaster management, where the Centre plays a larger role for more vulnerable regions.
Key Details
- The Centre and states contribute to the SDRF in a 75:25 ratio for general category states
- For North-Eastern and Himalayan states, the ratio is more favourable to the state at 90:10, in recognition of their higher fiscal constraints and vulnerability
- The NDRF is financed entirely by the Union government, and is meant to be invoked only when the SDRF corpus of the affected state proves insufficient
- Finance Commissions periodically review and revise the size and norms of these funds; the 16th Finance Commission's recommendation on heatwave and lightning notification applies specifically to the 2026-31 award period
The expanded notification affects how much of this jointly and centrally funded pool of money states can now legitimately draw upon for heat-related relief, effectively increasing the fiscal space available to state governments for a climate-linked hazard.
Heatwaves as a Climate Risk and Disaster Management Response
Heatwaves are increasingly recognised as a serious and rising public health hazard linked to climate change, prompting a shift from treating them as a routine seasonal weather event to formally classifying them within India's institutional disaster management architecture, alongside mechanisms like Heat Action Plans (HAPs) coordinated by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
Key Details
- The NDMA has been promoting Heat Action Plans at state and city levels since 2013, following the Ahmedabad Heat Action Plan, widely cited as one of India's first
- HAPs typically involve early warning systems, inter-agency coordination, and public health measures such as cooling shelters and adjusted work-hour advisories during heatwave alerts
- Recognition as a notified calamity strengthens the financial backbone for such plans by making structured relief and compensation funding available, rather than leaving states dependent solely on their own discretionary spending
- Effective utilisation depends on state capacity for real-time data collection, early warning dissemination, and coordinated implementation, which the current framework flags as an area needing strengthening even after the funding expansion
The financial reclassification is only one half of an effective heatwave response; the article's emphasis on the need for stronger state-level planning and implementation reflects the broader disaster management principle that funding access alone does not guarantee reduced mortality without institutional preparedness.
- Notified natural calamities list expanded from 12 to 14 categories with the addition of heatwave and lightning
- SDRF is constituted under Section 48(1)(a) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005
- Centre-state SDRF funding ratio: 75:25 for general states, 90:10 for North-Eastern and Himalayan states; NDRF is 100% Centre-funded
- Prior to notification, heatwave-related spending from SDRF was capped at 10% of a state's annual allocation as a "local disaster"
- Approximately 4,900 heatstroke cases and around 20 confirmed deaths were recorded nationally between March and July 2026
- Highest heatstroke case counts reported in Telangana, West Bengal, and Chhattisgarh
- The 16th Finance Commission's recommendation covers the 2026-31 award period