The Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India report (ADSI) of the NCRB provides data on accidental deaths attributable to the forces of nature like earthquakes, floods, lightning, and epidemics, to name a few. Analysis indicates that the NCRB & Jal Shakti Ministry provide different numbers on Flood related fatalities. The recent incidents of ‘Forest Fires’ ravaging several parts of Uttarakhand and claiming 5 lives have sparked a debate on the increasing number of natural disasters and fatalities, affecting both the environment and humans. Against this backdrop, we look at the number of fatalities caused by various types of natural calamities or forces of nature. Methodology and Notes The NCRB classifies accident data into two broad groups – accidental deaths due to causes attributable to nature and unnatural accidental deaths. Accidental deaths attributable to the forces of nature are those due to earthquakes, floods, lightning, and epidemics, to name a few. As per the 2022 report, over 4.3 lakh accidental deaths were reported, of which 8060 (1.8%) deaths were due to forces of nature. On average, 43 people lost their lives per day due to forces of nature between 1990 and 2022 Between 1990 and 2022, more than 5.19 lakh deaths were recorded due to the forces of nature. On average, 43 persons lost their lives per day to the forces of nature. About 72% of the victims were males and 28% were females. Data on transgenders was included from 2014 only, and account for a minuscule share of victims. There has been no specific trend in deaths due to forces of nature since 1990. This is because of the varying frequency and intensity of natural calamities. However, in the 20 years between 1996 and 2015, over 4.33 lakh deaths were recorded, out of the total 5.19 lakh deaths reported in 33 years. That is, nearly 82% of the deaths due to forces of nature between 1990 and 2022, took place between 1996 and 2015. On average, about 21,662 deaths due to forces of nature were recorded each year or 56 deaths were recorded a day in the period between 1996 and 2015. Since 1993, the four-year average number of deaths due to forces of nature was the lowest in 2018-21 If the average number of deaths every four years during the 33-year period is considered, the number of deaths increased from 6079 in 1990-1993 to 11,514 in 1994-1997, and further up to 26,071 in 1998-2001. Following a drop in the 2002-2005 period to 18,257, the average number of deaths was above 23,000 in 2006-2009 and 2010-2013. Between 2014-2017, the average number of deaths dropped to 11,634 and further dropped to 7,391 in 2018-2021, the lowest average since 1993. Even if we take the latest four years data into consideration, the number of deaths were 8,145 in 2019, 7,405 in 2020, 7,126 in 2021, and 8,060 in 2022, with the average number of deaths being close to what was observed during 2018-2021. The reason for a higher average between 1998-2001 is the devastating Bhuj Earthquake in Gujarat in 2001. In 2001, ADSI reported a total of 36,651 deaths due to forces of nature, the highest in the last 33 years. Likewise, a higher average in the period 2002 to 2005 can be attributed to the Tsunami in 2004 along the southeast coast of India. Deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic have not been included in this report though endemics are considered one of the natural causes of death in the ADSI report. This has been mentioned explicitly in the ADSI reports for 2020, 2021 and 2022. Exact cause of Death remains unknown in bulk of the cases The list of ‘natural calamities’ or ‘forces of nature’ considered in the NCRB report has become more extensive over the years. For instance, in the early 1990s, only lightning, heatstroke, floods, landslides, cold and exposure, and cyclones were listed. However, since 1995, deaths due to avalanches, earthquakes, epidemics, and torrential rains were included. Deaths in cyclones included deaths due to tornadoes as well for a few years. Since 2014, the report included deaths due to forest fires and due to Tsunami. While there have been improvements in categorizing the causes of deaths resulting from natural disasters, the precise reasons behind many fatalities remain elusive. For instance, a significant portion of deaths was due to unknown causes labelled as ‘Others’ in the data. These deaths have totalled more than 70% of deaths reported in this category in the years 2011 to 2014. The ‘Others’ category consistently accounted for 70% or more of all the deaths, representing the highest proportion among recorded causes. Although this percentage decreased to an average of 25-27% from 2015 to 2022, it still ranked as the second leading cause of death after lightning strikes. In other words, the exact causes of death remain unknown in most cases.