• The announcement was made at the 151st Foundation Day celebrations of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), functions under the MoES, held at Mausam Bhawan in New Delhi, Delhi.

• What? Union MoS announces deployment of 200 Automatic Weather stations
• Announced at: 151st foundation day of IMD
• Coverage: 50 AWS each in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Pune
• Mission: Mission Mausam – Phase II
• Objective: High-resolution urban weather data for accurate forecasting of extreme events
• Current AWS Network: ~1,000 AWS nationwide
• New Facilities Inaugurated: Model Observatory, 3D-Printed AWS, Agro-AWS

Key Details:
Key People: The foundation day event was attended by Dr M Ravichandran, Secretary, MoES; Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Director General(DG) of Meteorology, IMD, along with senior officials, scientists, and members of the IMD family.
Weather Stations: Out of the total 200 AWS, 50 each will be installed in Delhi, Mumbai(Maharashtra), Chennai(Tamil Nadu, TN) and Pune(Maharashtra) during 2026, under Mission Mausam Phase II.

• The weather Stations will provide granular and high-resolution spatial data, enabling more accurate prediction of sudden downpours, thunderstorms, extreme heat events, and rapid pressure changes.
• At present, India operates a network of about 1,000 AWS.

Inauguration of Advanced Facilities: As part of the programme, Union MoS Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated several key facilities at the IMD campus, including a Model Observatory, a three-dimensional(3D)-Printed AWS, and an Agro-AWS.

• These initiatives underscore India’s focus on indigenously developed, cost-effective, and modular meteorological technologies aimed at improving data accuracy and operational efficiency.

Weather forecasting Progress: India’s weather forecasting capabilities has transformed such as:

• Cyclone track prediction accuracy has increased by nearly 35% to 40%, while errors in monthly and seasonal forecasts have reduced sharply from around 7.5% to nearly 2.5%.
• The number of weather radars has nearly tripled over the past decade, now covering close to 87% of the country’s geographical area.
• India now extends disaster-related weather information and satellite-based support to neighbouring countries, including Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka.

About India Meteorological Department (IMD):
It was established to provide critical weather and climate services and also play a vital role in disaster management, agriculture, aviation, and public safety.
Director General (DG)- Dr. Mrutyunjay Mohapatra
Headquarters- New Delhi, Delhi
Established– 1875