Six states of India – Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal -- are highly vulnerable to climate change, according to a recent study.

Jharkhand is the most vulnerable state, while Maharashtra is the least vulnerable in the country, as per the climate change vulnerability index value by India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra).

"All states in India are vulnerable to climate change/risks. Since different factors are drivers of vulnerability in different states, own fiscal capacity of a state will be an important factor determining its capacity to respond to the threat posed by climate change, notwithstanding the financial support from the union government/international agencies," Ind-Ra said.

Ind-Ra’s climate vulnerability assessment is based on the govt report on Climate Vulnerability Assessment for Adaptation Planning in India Using a Common Framework.

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The report points out that the major drivers of vulnerability across states are lack of forest area per 1,000 population, the high proportion of area under rainfed agriculture, and a lack of coverage of central crop insurance schemes. These factors contribute to the high vulnerability of the agricultural sector.

Also, these vulnerable states are situated in the ecologically fragile Eastern Himalayan Region. Their location overlaps with disaster-prone areas according to multi-hazard maps prepared by the National Disaster Management Authority.

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(Edited by : Jomy Jos Pullokaran)