This article covers India's humanitarian assistance, capacity building and development partnership with Afghanistan. It is based on the MEA brief of July 2026, and quantities and project counts are as given in that brief.

Humanitarian assistance since August 2021

According to the MEA brief of July 2026, India remains committed to providing humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan through bilateral channels, UN specialised agencies and other institutions. Since August 2021, with a special focus on healthcare, education and food security, India has supplied:

  • 50,000 tons of wheat
  • 40,000 litres of pesticide
  • 430 tons of medicines and vaccines
  • 58.6 tons of other essential relief items
  • 116 tons of specialised material for drug treatment centres (DTCs) operated by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

In December 2025, India donated 20 medical ambulances to various hospitals in Afghanistan.

Earthquake and flood relief

Following the earthquakes in August and November 2025, and the floods in April and July 2026, India provided humanitarian assistance. It comprised earthquake relief material, food supplies, essential medicines, medical equipment and other HADR assistance, including kitchen sets, family tents, hygiene kits, tarpaulins, plastic sheets and sleeping bags. In July 2026, to support the shelter and rehabilitation needs of Afghan returnees, India donated family tents to the Afghan Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation.

Scholarships and support for education

Since 2023, India has awarded scholarships to 3,000 Afghan students, including 1,000 female students, to pursue online undergraduate and postgraduate programmes at Indian universities. India also continues to support educational institutions in Afghanistan by providing academic books, stationery, toys, IT equipment, winter clothing and other educational materials.

Development projects since 2005

Since 2005, India and Afghanistan have partnered on large projects, including the Afghan Parliament, Salma Dam and the Zaranj-Delaram Highway (218 km). They have also worked on community development through the Small Development Projects (SDP) and High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDP).

According to the brief, India's development partnership with Afghanistan includes around 500 projects, spread across each of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. The projects are in critical areas of power, water supply, road connectivity, healthcare, education, agriculture and capacity building.

New projects

Over the past year, as of the brief, India has undertaken several new development projects in Afghanistan based on proposals received from the Afghan side. Notable projects named in the brief include:

  • construction of five rural health clinics
  • an Oncology Centre and a Trauma Centre
  • maternity clinics and a Thalassaemia Centre
  • a 30-bed hospital
  • residential units for Afghan returnees

The Afghan Minister of Public Health and the Minister for Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock were among the ministers who visited India between October 2025 and July 2026, as listed in the relations article of this guide.