By Rita Missal, Member, and Shivani Das, Consultant, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), India

Disaster and climate change are increasingly exposing and deepening existing social inequalities. Among the most urgent yet often overlooked risks in disaster contexts is gender-based violence (GBV). While GBV exists in everyday life, evidence shows that disasters and climate stresses, such as floods, cyclones, droughts, and extreme heat, can significantly intensify the risks faced by women and girls. Addressing GBV must therefore become an integral component of disaster risk reduction and climate resilience efforts.

Globally, it is estimated that one in three women experiences violence during her lifetime. The UN Spotlight Initiative’s 2025 report, Colliding Crises, establishes that for every 1°C rise in global mean temperature, IPV incidence increases by 4.7 percent — projecting that at 2°C warming, 40 million additional women annually will face IPV by 2090. India experienced extreme weather events on 331 of 334 days in 2025, resulting in at least 4,419 deaths. The intersection of these two data streams is not incidental, it is structural, and it calls for a structural response.

In India, the scale of this challenge is evident. According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), nearly 29.3 percent of married women report experiencing spousal violence. The state-level picture is more acute: Karnataka reports 44.4 per cent domestic violence prevalence among ever-married women, the highest in the country; Bihar and Manipur each report 40 percent.

Climate stress and disasters often aggravate these vulnerabilities. Displacement, economic insecurity, overcrowded shelters, and disruption of protection systems create environments where violence can increase. When livelihoods collapse and stress rises within households and communities, women often face heightened risks of domestic violence, harassment, trafficking, and exploitation.

Temporary shelters may lack adequate lighting, privacy, and separate sanitation facilities for women. At the same time, access to health care, legal support, and psychosocial services may also become limited during emergencies, making it more difficult for survivors to seek assistance.

Climate change is also introducing new dimensions to this issue. Extreme heat, which is becoming more frequent and intense in many parts of India, has been associated with increased incidents of interpersonal violence, including domestic violence. Studies from several regions show that helpline calls and reported cases of domestic violence often rise during periods of extreme heat and economic stress. The 2022 Lancet Planetary Health systematic review confirmed heat as a primary climate-GBV driver across multiple geographies. Similarly, exposure to cyclones has been associated with a 1.59 times higher likelihood of emotional IPV. As climate impacts intensify, these risks are likely to grow unless protective measures are systematically embedded in policy and practice.

Recognising these challenges, India has taken several steps to strengthen gender-responsive disaster governance. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has developed guidelines that support protection and dignity for disaster-affected populations The 2019 Guidelines on Temporary Shelters for Disaster-Affected Populations, emphasise standards for relief camp designs that can incorporate GBV risk mitigation measures such as safe shelter design, lighting, privacy, women-only spaces, and access to sanitation. The 2023 Guidelines on Psycho-Social Support and Mental Health Services in Disasters, highlight the need for trauma-informed care and survivor support in affected communities. In addition, the 2025 Advisory on Gender-Responsive Disaster Risk Reduction, provides an overarching direction gender inclusion across disaster preparedness, response and recovery.

However, policy frameworks must translate into action at the ground level. Disaster preparedness and response systems should incorporate gender-sensitive risk assessments, improved data collection, and survivor-centred response mechanisms. Training disaster responders  including emergency teams, local volunteers, and community leaders can help ensure that GBV risks are recognised and addressed promptly. Strengthening coordination between disaster management authorities, women and child development departments, and civil society organisations is also essential.

Data systems play a central role in enabling this transition. The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030) recommends the collection of sex, age, and disability-disaggregated data (SADD) as a baseline requirement for meaningful vulnerability assessment. Integrating GBV risk indicators, reported violence rates, shelter safety audit results, and women’s access to services, into the disaster databases would create an evidence architecture capable of informing more targeted, effective, and accountable disaster response.

Technology also offers promising avenues for strengthening response systems. Mobile-based community feedback platforms have also demonstrated reach in the Indian context: a WASH governance project in Bhubaneswar and Jaipur, implemented under the Water for Women fund, generated over 18,750 calls from community members, the majority of them women, between 2023 and 2024. Technology-enabled reporting mechanisms, designed for basic feature phones and low-connectivity environments, represent a scalable component of a broader survivor support infrastructure. Only 0.04 per cent of global climate development finance currently targets gender equality as a primary objective, a figure that reflects the scale of the opportunity for India to position itself as a leader in this space.

India’s disaster management institutions, including NDMA, have built a framework of guidelines, plans, and institutional capacity that reflects a serious engagement with the gendered dimensions of disaster. However, these instruments through which this engagement can be deepened must be implemented more systematically.

Ending gender-based violence in disaster and climate contexts by 2030 will require sustained commitment and collaboration. Integrating protection into disaster risk governance, empowering women’s leadership, and ensuring that women’s voices inform policy decisions can help build safer and more resilient communities.

Ultimately, disaster resilience must go beyond infrastructure and preparedness. It must ensure safety, dignity, and justice for women and girls in a rapidly changing climate.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this piece are those of the author/s and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of AIDMI.