Bhubaneswar: Uncertainty caused by climate change, combined with the need for rapid and frequent updates, has complicated the weather forecasting process, said director general of India Meteorological Department (IMD), Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, here on Monday, while speaking at an event marking the 150th anniversary of IMD.
“Climate change altered weather patterns, making them more unpredictable. This demands higher accuracy and quicker dissemination of information to mitigate potential impacts,” said Mohapatra. He added that IMD’s focus is no longer limited to predicting weather. “We are now offering insights into its potential impact on lives and livelihoods, enabling targeted and timely action. Impact-based forecasts (IBF) will give details of what the weather will do rather than what the weather will be,” he said.
IMD has augmented its observation system by installing 53 radars and another 60 balloons, and the three-dimensional observation of factors like temperature and winds so that minute variations in atmospheric observation can be recorded. “IMD has started giving forecasts at block and panchayat levels with a focus on a 5 to 6 km radius. Our aim is for each household in Odisha to get weather information as and when they want. The Mousam app can provide a localised weather forecast of any place in the country with basic parameters,” Mohapatra said.
According to him, different physiological variations make Odisha more vulnerable to natural disasters. “IMD has always considered Odisha as an experimental field and decided to augment the observational system with departmental observatories, automated stations, rain gauges, doppler radars, and satellites. All 30 districts of Odisha have observatories, and IMD is set to install three more doppler radars in Sambalpur, Balasore, and Bhubaneswar, along with the two existing ones in Paradip and Gopalpur,” said Mohapatra.
Deputy chief minister KV Singh Deo, revenue and disaster management minister Suresh Pujari, meteorological experts and researchers attended the function.