Lok Sabha Question No. 2588 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-08-07
Subject: Earth Sciences Research
Ministry: EARTH SCIENCES
Asked by: Shri Manickam Tagore B, Shri Vijayakumar Alias Vijay Vasanth

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EARTH SCIENCES LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2588 TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, 7 TH AUGUST, 2024

## EARTH SCIENCES RESEARCH

## 2588.  SHRI MANICKAM TAGORE B: SHRI VIJAYAKUMAR ALIAS VIJAY VASANTH:

Will the Minister of EARTH SCIENCES be pleased to state:

- (a) the status of technology infrastructure and equipment used in Earth Sciences Research and Monitoring across the country;
- (b) details  of  the  specific  technological  challenges  faced  by  earth  scientists  in  conducting research, data collection and analysis;
- (c) whether  the  Government  plans  to  upgrade  existing  technology  to  enhance  capabilities  in areas such as climate modeling, disaster prediction, and natural resource assessment;
- (d) whether  any  collaborative  efforts  or  partnerships  with  research  institutions,  private  sector entities, or international organizations aimed at advancing technological innovation in Earth Sciences has been initiated by Government, if so, the details thereof;
- (e) the steps taken by the Ministry to integrate cutting-edge technologies such as remote sensing, artificial  intelligence and big data analytics into Earth Sciences Research and applications; and
- (f) whether  the Government  outline  any  budgetary  allocations or  funding priorities for technology upgradation in the field of Earth Sciences for the current fiscal year?

## ANSWER

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

- (a) The  technology infrastructure and equipment used in Earth Sciences Research and Monitoring across the country include:
-  High-Performance Computing (HPC) facility of 6.8 PFlops for weather and climate services.
-  39 Doppler Weather Radars for weather monitoring.
-  A  fleet  of  Six  scientific  research  vessels  to  conduct  the  oceanographic  research programmes/projects the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean.
-  Two  year-round  stations  in  Antarctica  (Maitri  and  Bharati),  one  station  in  Arctic (Himadri), and one station in the Himalayas (Himansh).
-  Atmospheric Research Testbed which is an open field observatory with state-of-art Instruments near Bhopal for better understanding of monsoon processes.
-  A high-altitude cloud physics laboratory (HACPL) was established at Mahabaleshwar for understanding clouds, aerosols and precipitation over the Western Ghats.
-  Scientific  deep  drilling  to  comprehend  the  genesis  of  water-  reservoir  triggered earthquakes in the Koyna region of Maharashtra.
- (b) No.
- (c) Yes. The HPC facility will be augmented by about 21.1 PFlops.
- (d) Yes. Ministry of Earth Sciences in collaboration with the national Institutes is developing the manned submersible for 6000 m water depth under the Deep Ocean Mission.
- (e) Artificial Intelligence (AI) and remote sensing are being used to improve weather, climate, and ocean forecasting skills at various institutes under the Ministry.
- (f) Yes.  The  budget  (BE  component)  allocated  for  the  central  sector  scheme  Atmosphere  & Climate Research-Modelling Observing Systems & Services (ACROSS) IMD component is 233.27 Cr for the FY 2024-25.

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