Modi-Obama Sign Key Monsoon Forecast Agreement



Barack Obama’s visit to India was not just about bear hugs, defence co-operation, civil nuclear deal, and chuckle some Bollywood dialogues. The visit also focused on other key areas such as hydrology, weather forecasting, monsoon prediction, and related water studies. The co-operation between the two countries on weather forecasting, will help in a better understanding of coupled ocean-atmosphere monsoon system over India, and will be crucial in future studies.

From the days of the 16 parameter model to the latest ensemble technique, weather forecasting in India has undergone several stages of evolution. Over the years, multiple efforts have been put into developing a complete understanding of monsoon forecasting in India. This year only, India Meteorological Department (IMD) embarked on a Rs. 350 crore project to understand the role of Himalayas in context of Indian climate and monsoon in particular.

One of the main objectives of the agreement is to work on dynamical weather prediction models in order to develop a more complete understanding of the Indian monsoon and related precipitation characteristics. These combined sincere efforts between India and USA are aimed towards the betterment of monsoon forecasting in India.

India will embrace an improved and efficient monsoon forecasting mechanism with arms wide open. The recent developments at IMD along with special focus on weather forecasting during Obama’s visit will help the masses in more than one way. The overall technological co-operation along with database and expertise sharing will help India handle the monsoon situation in a much better manner.