Jammu, Jun 5: Union Minister of State in PMO and the Union Minister of State (independent charge) for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences Jitendra Singh inaugurated the new Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) at Jammu on Friday and announced that a similar centre would soon be established in Lucknow, expanding India’s regional weather forecasting network.
The Jammu facility becomes the country’s seventh Regional Meteorological Centre and will serve Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh, providing specialised weather services, disaster warnings and climate support tailored to the Himalayan region.
The Minister announced that in the backdrop of last year’s disaster in Chisoti, an Automatic Weather Station near the site besides a seismology centre would be established in Kishtwar.
While speaking to media persons, Jitendra said that the project near cloud-burst affected Chisoti would be implemented soon as the land required was already approved.
“We had asked the district administration to provide suitable land for it. Just yesterday, the Deputy Commissioner Kishtwar informed me that he had already approved the land. Therefore, we can move forward for implementation of the project. Such projects can be implemented only if they are followed up professionally and that’s exactly what we have done in this case.”
Responding to a query about the recent incidents of cloudbursts in Reasi and Kishtwar districts, Jitendra clarified that no exact cloudburst forecast was possible however predictions about the contributing local factors were being made.
“All our efforts aim at predicting the factors contributing to cloudbursts. Precisely, we are trying to ensure that there are no losses at all, in absence of forecasts. In fact, I need to stress that there is no shortcoming on account of weather forecasts or their exactness. Problem is on account of compliance vis-à-vis those forecasts, sometimes by the administration and also by the other concerned stakeholders including the civilians. It is generally seen that the forecasts are not taken seriously. The forecasts should be taken seriously,” he asserted.
The Union Minister said the establishment of RMC Jammu marked an important restructuring of the India Meteorological Department’s regional operations. “Until now, the Regional Meteorological Centre in Delhi coordinated weather and climate services for Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. With the creation of the Jammu centre, weather services for Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh will be managed from Jammu, while the proposed Lucknow centre will cater to Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand,” he shared.
Jitendra said the new centre would strengthen weather monitoring, forecasting and early-warning systems in a region characterised by diverse terrain ranging from plains to high-altitude mountains. It will provide district-level forecasts, mountain weather forecasts, tourist advisories, city-specific weather services and warnings for flash floods, cloudbursts (contributing factors), avalanches, heavy snowfall, thunderstorms and landslides.
Earlier addressing the gathering, the Union Minister said that the services were expected to benefit pilgrims undertaking the Amarnath and Vaishno Devi yatras, farmers, transport operators, hydropower projects, disaster management agencies and security forces operating in difficult terrain.
Highlighting the expansion of meteorological infrastructure in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh over the past decade, Jitendra said, “There was no Doppler weather radar in the region in 2014. However, presently, four are operational at Jammu, Srinagar, Leh and Banihal Top. Under Mission Mausam, five additional Doppler weather radars have been proposed for Anantnag, Rajouri, Baramulla, Kishtwar and Doda.” The observational network has also expanded substantially. The region currently has 56 observatories, including 15 manual observatories, 25 Automatic Weather Stations (AWSs) and 16 Automatic Rain Gauges (ARGs), compared to 13 AWSs and 14 ARGs in 2014.
Recently, AWSs have been installed at Kargil, Ukhral in Ramban district and Mata Vaishno Devi Bhawan. During the current financial year, nearly eight more AWSs and five ARGs are expected to be installed. The number of stations under the Daily Rainfall Monitoring (DRM) Scheme has increased from 30 in 2014 to 85 at present, significantly improving rainfall monitoring and forecasting capabilities.
He also highlighted several scientific and institutional initiatives undertaken in the region. The Meteorological Centre at Srinagar signed collaborations with Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST)-Jammu, SKUAST-Kashmir and the Islamic University of Science and Technology to strengthen research and capacity-building in weather and climate sciences.
Jitendra also referred to the High Altitude Cloud Physics Laboratory established at Patnitop in collaboration with Swiss scientific institutions for cloud and aerosol studies in the Himalayan region.
On earthquake monitoring, the Union Minister said the Jammu and Kashmir seismological network underwent major modernisation, with seismic stations at Jammu and Kashmir upgraded to digital systems and an additional observatory established at Udhampur.
“A new seismological observatory has also been proposed in Kishtwar. At present, five seismic stations are operational across Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, transmitting near real-time data to the National Centre for Seismology,” he informed.
He also noted that the Srinagar Meteorological Observatory, functioning for over a century, was recognised by the World Meteorological Organization as a Centennial Observing Station.
“Now there will be regional forecasts, district-wise forecasts, separate forecasts for tourists and separate mountain forecasts,” Jitendra said, adding that customised forecasting would help address the specific needs of the Himalayan region.
Emphasising the role of weather services in disaster management, he said, “Flash floods, cloudbursts, avalanches, heavy snowfall, thunderstorms and landslides — all of these will be forecast in a timely manner.”
He stated that Jammu witnessed unprecedented development under the Modi government. “Jammu is probably the only city in India where all significant educational institutions of national level viz., IIT, IIM, AIIMS, IIMC and Central University are in 6-km radius,” he stated.
