Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in India
India: Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly was 4.76 Percentage change in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in India, 1981–2024
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
The most recent figure for exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in India is 4.76 Percentage change, measured in 2024.
The figure is up 602.8% on the previous year and up 1,396.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in India peaked at 8.42 Percentage change in 2020 and was at its lowest, -6.25 Percentage change, in 1987.
India ranks 12th of 167 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in India, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | -0.397 Percentage change | — |
| 1982 | -4.06 Percentage change | +923.1% |
| 1983 | 1.74 Percentage change | -142.9% |
| 1984 | -2.87 Percentage change | -264.8% |
| 1985 | -3.89 Percentage change | +35.4% |
| 1986 | -3.65 Percentage change | -6.1% |
| 1987 | -6.25 Percentage change | +71.4% |
| 1988 | -1 Percentage change | -84.0% |
| 1989 | -1.96 Percentage change | +95.4% |
| 1990 | 7.97 Percentage change | -506.1% |
| 1991 | -1.71 Percentage change | -121.5% |
| 1992 | -4.37 Percentage change | +155.6% |
| 1993 | 0.2381 Percentage change | -105.4% |
| 1994 | 1.69 Percentage change | +608.3% |
| 1995 | 1.64 Percentage change | -2.5% |
| 1996 | 2.15 Percentage change | +30.6% |
| 1997 | 5.17 Percentage change | +140.8% |
| 1998 | 7.29 Percentage change | +41.0% |
| 1999 | -0.9469 Percentage change | -113.0% |
| 2000 | -2.28 Percentage change | +140.4% |
| 2001 | -0.6636 Percentage change | -70.8% |
| 2002 | -5.12 Percentage change | +671.3% |
| 2003 | 2.63 Percentage change | -151.5% |
| 2004 | -0.3919 Percentage change | -114.9% |
| 2005 | 0.8526 Percentage change | -317.6% |
| 2006 | -0.5082 Percentage change | -159.6% |
| 2007 | 2.09 Percentage change | -511.6% |
| 2008 | 2.75 Percentage change | +31.7% |
| 2009 | -2.78 Percentage change | -201.1% |
| 2010 | 6.63 Percentage change | -338.1% |
| 2011 | 0.5514 Percentage change | -91.7% |
| 2012 | -2.01 Percentage change | -464.4% |
| 2013 | 6.31 Percentage change | -414.2% |
| 2014 | -0.3672 Percentage change | -105.8% |
| 2015 | 1.41 Percentage change | -485.1% |
| 2016 | 0.0325 Percentage change | -97.7% |
| 2017 | 1.47 Percentage change | +4422.5% |
| 2018 | -2.29 Percentage change | -255.9% |
| 2019 | 7.17 Percentage change | -412.9% |
| 2020 | 8.42 Percentage change | +17.4% |
| 2021 | 6.57 Percentage change | -22.0% |
| 2022 | 6.03 Percentage change | -8.2% |
| 2023 | 0.6772 Percentage change | -88.8% |
| 2024 | 4.76 Percentage change | +602.8% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 4.76 Percentage change is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is -5.84 Percentage change. (40 countries reporting)
- India's 4.76 Percentage change is above the median for South Asia, which is -5.59 Percentage change. (5 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | +4422.5% | 0.0325 Percentage change | 1.47 Percentage change |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | -2.48 Percentage change | -6.25 Percentage change | 1.74 Percentage change | 9 |
| 1990s | 1.91 Percentage change | -4.37 Percentage change | 7.97 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -0.3409 Percentage change | -5.12 Percentage change | 2.75 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.89 Percentage change | -2.29 Percentage change | 7.17 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.29 Percentage change | 0.6772 Percentage change | 8.42 Percentage change | 5 |
Countries ranked near India
- 9 Kazakhstan 4.99 Percentage change compare
- 10 Belgium 4.82 Percentage change compare
- 10 Ethiopia -1.55 Percentage change compare
- 11 Isle of Man 4.76 Percentage change compare
- 13 Mauritania -2.27 Percentage change compare
- 13 Puerto Rico 4.71 Percentage change compare
- 14 San Marino 3.23 Percentage change compare
- 15 Tanzania 2.43 Percentage change compare
More environment data for India
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 11.05 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 12.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.254 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.954 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 17.18 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.92 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 1.12 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in India?
- Exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in India was 4.76 Percentage change in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 8.42 Percentage change in 2020.
- What is the lowest exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was -6.25 Percentage change in 1987.
- How does India rank for exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly?
- India ranks 12th out of 167 countries with data for 2024.
- Is exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1,396.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The dataset provides annual anomalies in land and cropland soil moisture content of the top soil layer compared to the reference period 1981-2010. Exposure indicators to drought have been prepared by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Please see the working paper for a more complete description of the methods. The datasets span the period 1981-2022 and is the result of the use of a variety of geospatial data sources, including the ERA5-Land averaged monthly data of volumetric soil moisture and ESA CCI land cover data. Average anomalies have been calculated for both land and cropland exposure to drought. The dataset has a global coverage on a national level; on the sub-national TL2 level (i.e. large subnational regions) results are reported for all OECD countries as well as for Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia and South Africa. A number of aggregates are included: Euro area, European Union, Advanced economies, Emerging market economies, G7, G20, OECD, OECD Europe, OECD Asia Oceania, OECD Americas and the LAC region. Data source(s): Copernicus Climate Change Initiative land cover data and Copernicus Climate Data Store monthly soil moisture data (ERA5). Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org Database documentation