Centre to deploy 50 Automatic Weather Stations for real-time weather forecasting

New Delhi: Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh on Thursday announced 50 Automatic Weather Stations each will be installed in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Pune during the year 2026 for real-time weather forecasting particularly in densely populated urban regions.

The announcement was made during the 151st Foundation Day celebrations of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) here in New Delhi.

Addressing senior officers and meteorology experts Mr Jitendra Singh said that a significant expansion of India’s urban weather observation infrastructure is taking place with the deployment of 200 Automatic Weather Stations across four major metropolitan cities.

He further added that it will mark a decisive step towards strengthening hyper-local, real-time weather forecasting and disaster preparedness, particularly in densely populated urban regions.

Highlighting the transformation in India’s weather forecasting capabilities, the Minister said forecast accuracy has improved by more than 40 to 50 per cent compared to earlier decades.

“Cyclone track prediction accuracy has increased by nearly 35 to 40 per cent, while errors in monthly and seasonal forecasts have reduced sharply from around 7.5 per cent to nearly 2.5 per cent” he informed.

He attributed these improvements to sustained investment, technological freedom, and institutional support over the last decade.

Detailing IMD’s infrastructure expansion, Dr Jitendra Singh said the number of weather radars has nearly tripled over the past decade, now covering close to 87 per cent of the country’s geographical area.

He pointed to the expansion of Doppler Weather Radars, solar radiation monitoring networks, aerosol monitoring systems, micro radiometers, and rainfall monitoring schemes that now extend down to the district and block levels.

The Minister also highlighted the development of highly localised forecasts, including ultra-short-range predictions that allow citizens to make informed decisions within timeframes as precise as three hours.

As part of the programme, Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated multiple key facilities at the IMD campus, including a Model Observatory, a 3D-Printed Automatic Weather Station, and an Agro-Automatic Weather Station.

“These facilities reflect India’s growing emphasis on indigenously developed, cost-effective and modular meteorological technologies designed to enhance data quality and operational efficiency” said the statement.