Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in India
India: Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly was 12.52 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in India, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
In 2025, historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in India stood at 12.52 Percentage change.
That represents a change of up 141.4% on the previous year and up 711.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in India peaked at 20.08 Percentage change in 1951 and was at its lowest, -9.5 Percentage change, in 1987.
India ranks 1st of 168 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly in India, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 8.57 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | 20.08 Percentage change | +134.4% |
| 1952 | 1.81 Percentage change | -91.0% |
| 1953 | 11.63 Percentage change | +542.4% |
| 1954 | 4.26 Percentage change | -63.4% |
| 1955 | 5.57 Percentage change | +30.7% |
| 1956 | 11.33 Percentage change | +103.4% |
| 1957 | -3.48 Percentage change | -130.8% |
| 1958 | 6.36 Percentage change | -282.6% |
| 1959 | 7.55 Percentage change | +18.6% |
| 1960 | -4.99 Percentage change | -166.0% |
| 1961 | 6.13 Percentage change | -223.0% |
| 1962 | -1.57 Percentage change | -125.7% |
| 1963 | 1.58 Percentage change | -200.5% |
| 1964 | 1.29 Percentage change | -18.5% |
| 1965 | -3.33 Percentage change | -358.3% |
| 1966 | -2.1 Percentage change | -36.9% |
| 1967 | 1.49 Percentage change | -170.8% |
| 1968 | 1.91 Percentage change | +28.6% |
| 1969 | -5.53 Percentage change | -389.5% |
| 1970 | 4.43 Percentage change | -180.0% |
| 1971 | 7.13 Percentage change | +60.9% |
| 1972 | -7.03 Percentage change | -198.6% |
| 1973 | 2.1 Percentage change | -129.9% |
| 1974 | -3.62 Percentage change | -272.3% |
| 1975 | 5.68 Percentage change | -256.7% |
| 1976 | -4.06 Percentage change | -171.6% |
| 1977 | -0.1869 Percentage change | -95.4% |
| 1978 | 1.64 Percentage change | -979.8% |
| 1979 | -0.9692 Percentage change | -158.9% |
| 1980 | -1.15 Percentage change | +19.1% |
| 1981 | 3.56 Percentage change | -408.3% |
| 1982 | -5.95 Percentage change | -267.2% |
| 1983 | 2.13 Percentage change | -135.9% |
| 1984 | -4.87 Percentage change | -328.3% |
| 1985 | -4.74 Percentage change | -2.7% |
| 1986 | -4.28 Percentage change | -9.7% |
| 1987 | -9.5 Percentage change | +121.9% |
| 1988 | -0.5987 Percentage change | -93.7% |
| 1989 | -0.4992 Percentage change | -16.6% |
| 1990 | 10.61 Percentage change | -2224.8% |
| 1991 | -1.71 Percentage change | -116.1% |
| 1992 | -3.96 Percentage change | +131.4% |
| 1993 | 0.4523 Percentage change | -111.4% |
| 1994 | 0.3862 Percentage change | -14.6% |
| 1995 | 0.3251 Percentage change | -15.8% |
| 1996 | 0.3359 Percentage change | +3.3% |
| 1997 | 7.42 Percentage change | +2108.9% |
| 1998 | 10.67 Percentage change | +43.8% |
| 1999 | -3.08 Percentage change | -128.9% |
| 2000 | -2.68 Percentage change | -12.9% |
| 2001 | -2.14 Percentage change | -20.4% |
| 2002 | -5.78 Percentage change | +170.5% |
| 2003 | 4.96 Percentage change | -185.8% |
| 2004 | -0.3096 Percentage change | -106.2% |
| 2005 | 2.96 Percentage change | -1056.4% |
| 2006 | -0.0022 Percentage change | -100.1% |
| 2007 | 2.61 Percentage change | -116800.9% |
| 2008 | 1.69 Percentage change | -35.2% |
| 2009 | -2.58 Percentage change | -253.0% |
| 2010 | 4.59 Percentage change | -277.6% |
| 2011 | 1.42 Percentage change | -69.1% |
| 2012 | -3.94 Percentage change | -377.4% |
| 2013 | 4.12 Percentage change | -204.5% |
| 2014 | -1.13 Percentage change | -127.5% |
| 2015 | 1.54 Percentage change | -236.5% |
| 2016 | 1.32 Percentage change | -14.6% |
| 2017 | 2.11 Percentage change | +59.9% |
| 2018 | -2.86 Percentage change | -236.1% |
| 2019 | 8.09 Percentage change | -382.3% |
| 2020 | 8.13 Percentage change | +0.5% |
| 2021 | 3.45 Percentage change | -57.6% |
| 2022 | 4.64 Percentage change | +34.5% |
| 2023 | 5.5 Percentage change | +18.7% |
| 2024 | 5.19 Percentage change | -5.7% |
| 2025 | 12.52 Percentage change | +141.4% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 12.52 Percentage change is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is -4.58 Percentage change. (40 countries reporting)
- India's 12.52 Percentage change is above the median for South Asia, which is 2.41 Percentage change, 5.2× the median. (5 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Historical 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | +116800.9% | -0.0022 Percentage change | 2.61 Percentage change |
| 1990 | +2224.8% | -0.4992 Percentage change | 10.61 Percentage change |
| 1997 | +2108.9% | 0.3359 Percentage change | 7.42 Percentage change |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 7.37 Percentage change | -3.48 Percentage change | 20.08 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -0.512 Percentage change | -5.53 Percentage change | 6.13 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.5109 Percentage change | -7.03 Percentage change | 7.13 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | -2.59 Percentage change | -9.5 Percentage change | 3.56 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.14 Percentage change | -3.96 Percentage change | 10.67 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -0.1278 Percentage change | -5.78 Percentage change | 4.96 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.52 Percentage change | -3.94 Percentage change | 8.09 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.57 Percentage change | 3.45 Percentage change | 12.52 Percentage change | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
- 1 Lesotho 7.72 Percentage change compare
- 2 Northern Mariana Islands 10.19 Percentage change compare
- 3 Mauritius 9.84 Percentage change compare
- 4 Eswatini 6.06 Percentage change compare
- 4 South Africa 8.52 Percentage change compare
More environment data for India
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 11.05 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)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in India?
- Historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly in India was 12.52 Percentage change in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 20.08 Percentage change in 1951.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was -9.5 Percentage change in 1987.
- How does India rank for historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly?
- India ranks 1st out of 168 countries with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — cropland soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 711.9%. 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 Historical 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 (0 to 7 cm) 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 1981-2024 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 based on the ERA5-Land reanalysis dataset. Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org