Mission Mausam with Rs 2,000 cr initiative to transform India into a ‘Weather-Ready, Climate-Smart’ Nation

NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) held a national press interaction on Mission Mausam at Prithvi Bhavan in New Delhi. Dr. M. Ravichandran, Secretary of MoES, along with Dr. Mritunjay Mohapatra, Director General of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), and Dr. V.S. Prasad, Head of the National Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF), addressed the media.

According to the Ministry of Earth Sciences, the Union Cabinet approved Mission Mausam on September 11, with a budget of Rs 2,000 crore over two years. This initiative by the Government of India aims to make the country ‘Weather Ready’ and ‘Climate Smart’ by significantly improving weather and climate observations, understanding, modelling, and forecasting, ultimately delivering more accurate and timely services.

Mission Mausam aims to transform India into a “Weather-ready and Climate-smart” nation, with the objective of reducing the impact of climate change and extreme weather events while enhancing community resilience. The mission is scheduled for implementation from 2024 to 2026.

Dr M Ravichandran, Secretary @moesgoi; Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, DG @Indiametdept and Dr VS Prasad, Head @ncmrwfmoes, held a press briefing on #MissionMausam today, where they provided valuable insights into the initiative’s goals and impact on #India. The session concluded with… pic.twitter.com/7ApFhbY0ah

— MoES GoI (@moesgoi) September 12, 2024

The objectives of the proposed “Mission Mausam” include- develop cutting edge weather surveillance technologies and systems, implementing higher resolution atmospheric observations with better temporal and spatial sampling/coverage, implementing next-generation radars, and satellites with advanced instrument payloads, implementing high-performance computers (hpc), improving understanding of weather and climate processes and prediction capabilities, developing improved earth system models, and data-driven methods (use of ai/ml), developing technologies for weather management, developing state-of-the-art dissemination system for last mile connectivity, capacity building.

The mission aims to establish a comprehensive network of 50 Doppler Weather Radars (DWR), 60 Radio Sonde/Radio Wind (RS/RW) stations, 100 disdrometers, 10 wind profilers, 25 radiometers, 1 urban testbed, 1 process testbed, 1 ocean research station, and 10 marine automatic weather stations equipped with upper air observation capabilities.

According to Dr M Ravichandran, Secretary of MoES, Mission Mausam will enhance both spatial and temporal forecasts, along with air quality data, contributing to long-term strategies for weather management and interventions.

He noted, “By March 2026, we are looking at installing a wider network of radars, wind profilers, and radiometers for better observations. We also look forward to better understanding the physical processes and the science of weather forecasting. There will be improved data assimilation with increased ingestion of the observations. We will also fuse physics-based numerical models and data-driven AI/ML to improve the forecasts. We would witness more innovations, R&D, and advancements in atmospheric sciences.”

Dr. Ravichandran also emphasised that data dissemination and capacity building will be scaled up to benefit citizens and various stakeholders, ensuring that no weather system in the country goes undetected. MoES will deliver improved services for weather, climate, and natural hazards, ensuring economic and social benefits for multiple sectors.

The implementation of Mission Mausam will be led primarily by three institutions within MoES: the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the National Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF), and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology.

These organizations will be supported by other MoES institutions, such as the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services and the National Institute of Ocean Technology, along with partnerships from national and international institutions, academia, and industries, furthering India’s leadership in weather and climate sciences and services. (ANI)