A climate emergency is unfolding in J&K: This crisis demands urgent budgetary action 

Jammu & Kashmir is in the throes of a climate catastrophe. And this is no exaggeration. February 2025 shattered records as one of the hottest winter months in living memory, with Srinagar’s temperatures soaring to 18°C—a stark deviation from its usual near-freezing norms. The snowpack from late December, which once blanketed most of Kashmir, mainly South Kashmir, in 2–3 feet of snow, has vanished. The drying up of the Achabal spring and rapid glacial melt, while orchards and farms face an uncertain future, is indeed alarming. This is not an anomaly; it is the new normal. J&K’s precipitation deficit mirrors global warming trends, yet the absence of a coherent climate strategy at the governmental level is nothing short of alarming. The implications of this inaction are dire.

Agriculture, the backbone of J&K’s economy, is reeling. Apple growers, already battling erratic weather, now face water scarcity as precipitation and flowering and blossoming patterns change. The rapid disappearance of winter snow — a natural reservoir — this winter is a wakeup call, which threatens summer irrigation, risking crop failures and livelihood losses for lakhs of people. Public health is equally vulnerable, with rising heatwaves and vector-borne diseases more likely to spread to new areas.

Despite these cascading threats, J&K lacks even basic tools to respond. There is no systematic study assessing climate impacts on sectors like agriculture, health, or overall economy. No state-level climate mitigation or adaptation plan exists. The upcoming 2025–26 budget is a critical opportunity to course-correct – one the government cannot afford to squander.

It is high time that the government must treat climate change as an emergency and embed it into fiscal planning. Firstly, J&K government must develop  climate change mitigation strategy and an action plan. Towards that, it should consider establishing a J&K Climate Management Taskforce and allocate some financial resources to kickstart the process.

J&K cannot wait for Delhi or global summits to lead. The 2025–26 budget must lay the foundation for a 10-year Climate Resilience Mission, integrating short-term safeguards with long-term sustainability. This includes climate resilient agriculture, apple farming, and transitioning to newer practices adaptive to climate change. This approach would also necessitate promoting sustainable tourism, and launching community-led environmental conservation and afforestation drives.

The writing is on the wall: climate inaction will cost J&K far more than proactive investment. For a region where 70% livelihoods depend on climate-sensitive sectors, survival hinges on urgent, science-backed strategies. The upcoming budget is not just a fiscal document—it would be a litmus test of the government’s commitment to securing J&K’s future. The time for rhetoric is over. It is time for getting real and allocate financial resources, adopt evidence-based policies, and collaborate with experts before the window of opportunity closes. The mountains are melting, the rivers are angry, future of agriculture is uncertain and the people are watching.