NEW DELHI: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has introduced two new services aimed at enhancing weather forecasting and support for farmers. The first initiative is an AI-enabled monsoon advance forecasting system, designed to provide timely information on the progress of seasonal rainfall. This service will cover 16 states and more than 3,000 sub-districts, offering “localized weather information” up to four weeks in advance.
The second new service, currently in pilot phase, focuses on delivering high-resolution spatial rainfall forecasts specifically for Uttar Pradesh. This system can generate operational rainfall forecasts at a 1 km resolution for up to 10 days, utilizing an extensive network of observational data and advanced AI techniques. The IMD plans to expand similar services to other regions as the observational infrastructure continues to develop.
The pilot system incorporates sophisticated AI-driven downscaling methods and integrates information gathered from automatic rain gauges, automatic weather stations, Doppler weather radars, and satellite-based rainfall datasets.
In addition to various platforms such as mobile applications, SMS alerts, WhatsApp, Kisan portals, and television, hyperlocal forecast information will be accessible through displays located in vegetable and other markets.
Union Minister of Earth Sciences Jitendra Singh emphasized that these new products represent a significant shift from traditional weather forecasting to an impact-based and decision-support forecasting approach. This new methodology aims to provide “precise, location-specific and actionable information” to farmers, administrators, disaster managers, and the general public.
