Lok Sabha Question No. 3802 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-12-18
Subject: Mission Mausam
Ministry: EARTH SCIENCES
Asked by: Shri Ramasahayam Raghuram Reddy

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EARTH SCIENCES LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3802

## TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, 18 TH  DECEMBER, 2024

## MISSION MAUSAM

## 3802.   SHRI RAMASAHAYAM RAGHURAM REDDY:

Will the Minister of EARTH SCIENCES be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of objectives and components of Mission Mausam aimed at enhancing weather forecasting and modelling capabilities;
- (b) the total budget allocation for  Mission Mausam along with  specific details  on the 2,000 crore earmarked for the first two years;
- (c) the  timeline  for  the  rollout  of  Mission  Mausam  and  the  milestones  set  for  the  first  two years;
- (d) whether the Mission  will  address current  gaps  in  weather  forecasting  and  dissemination practices; and
- (e) the  details  of  the  expected  benefits  of  Mission  Mausam  on  disaster  management  and preparedness in concerning monsoon and cyclone forecasting?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) FOR MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCES (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

- (a) Mission  Mausam  is  envisaged  to  be  a  multi-faceted  and  transformative  initiative  to tremendously boost India's weather and climate-related science, research, and services. It will help better equip stakeholders, including citizens and last-mile users, to tackle extreme weather events and the impacts of climate change. The Mission Mausam is launched to make Bharat a "weather-ready and climate-smart" nation, with the following objectives:
-  Strengthening observations (in-situ  &  remote  sensing)  and  improved  model capability to be able to plan and protect life and property from extreme and highimpact weather
-  Gaining  a  better  understanding  and  use  of  Science,  Innovation  and  Technology, and Data Science for societal benefit
-  Improve our Model/Data Assimilation/HPC for giving accurate information to the Public and stakeholders (Numerical+Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning)
-  Trained Manpower in Earth System Science for today and tomorrow
-  Forecast dissemination: Effective communication with Society: Early Warning for ALL
- (b) The Union Cabinet has approved the central sector scheme 'Mission Mausam' atan outlay of INR 2,000 crores over two years. Mission Mausam is intended to augment the Doppler Weather  Radar  (DWR)  network  across  the  country  for  complete  radar  coverage  and  to enhance  the  accuracy  of  the  weather  forecasting  system.  The  exact  locations  are  being worked out for installing 87 more DWRs, 15 radiometers and 15 wind profilers across the country, to observe not only surface measurements but also upper atmosphere, to improve the  weather  forecast.  It  is  also  envisaged  to  set  up  urban  testbeds,  cloud  chamber  for weather modification research and installation of atmospheric chemistry instruments for air quality studies.
- (c) The newly launched Mission Mausam timeline is two years 2024-2026.
- (d) Yes. Currently, our observations are relatively sparse both in terms of spatial and temporal coverage. Moreover, the horizontal resolution of the Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models  is  12  km,  making  it  difficult  to  forecast  weather  events  in  India  accurately. Moreover, as climate change progresses, the atmosphere is becoming more chaotic. This leads  to  phenomena  like  isolated  heavy  rainfall  events  and  localized  droughts,  creating simultaneous  challenges  of  both  flooding  and  drought.  Understanding  these  complex patterns  demands  an  in-depth  knowledge  of  physical  processes  within  clouds,  outside clouds, on the surface, in the upper atmosphere, over the oceans, and in the Polar regions.

To address the above issues, Mission Mausam  envisages augmenting the entire observational  network  (surface  as  well  as  upper-air),  numerical  modelling  framework, incorporating  AI/ML  techniques,  enhancing  the  computing  power  and  training  and engaging adequate human resources so as to mitigate the impact of climate change-induced extreme weather events and strengthen the resilience of the communities.

- (e) Self-reliance of a country in developing accurate weather and climate forecast system is essential  for  optimizing  resource  use,  improving  safety,  mitigating  disasters  and  risks across  various  sectors, and assisting neighbouring  countries  in  need  of  accurate weather and climate forecasts, thereby enhancing overall societal resilience.

Mission  Mausam  will  develop  models  with  better  physics  and  higher  resolutions  better capture and predict extreme events and their impacts, providing valuable information for disaster preparedness and risk management. From the mitigation of the disasters point of view, seasonal prediction of cyclonic disturbances during all three seasons monsoon, pre and post-monsoon along with improvement in the seasonal and extended range predictions systems  for  monsoons  is  envisaged  Also,  assesssing  the  impact  of  severe  weather  on different sectors by engaging stakeholders from various sectors such as power, infrastructure,  transport  etc.  Decision  support  systems  and  multi-hazard  early  warning systems  are  the  key  elements  of  a  comprehensive  impact-based  disaster  risk  reduction (DRR) strategy, which will be addressed in this mission.

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