According to the World Meteorological Organisation, India lost more than $70 million in 2020 in natural calamities linked to climate change﹘one year before PM Modi’s speech at CoP26 which some saw as watering down of climate action ambitions. Will policies in India work in favour of those on the brink of climate change crises? We explore the issue through the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, and the impact of development, which prominent environmentalist Dr Vandana Shiva terms “violence against earth”.