Delhi’s Smog Crisis: IIT Team’s Artificial Rain Plan for November 20-21

Delhi Ministers Gopal Rai and Atishi held a meeting with a team from IIT Kanpur, which proposed that artificial rain may help amid the air emergency

“IIT Team Proposes Artificial Rain for Delhi on November 20-21 to Tackle Severe Smog Crisis”

The Delhi government, led by Arvind Kejriwal, is considering an artificial rain intervention on November 20-21 to alleviate the plight of residents struggling with a significant decline in air quality over the past week. The air quality index in the national capital has consistently lingered in the ‘severe’ category for seven consecutive days, attributed to a combination of crop residue burning in neighboring states and local sources such as vehicular emissions.

Delhi’s Environment Minister, Gopal Rai, and Finance Minister Atishi recently conducted a meeting with a team from IIT Kanpur. This team proposed the idea of implementing artificial rain as a potential solution to address the ongoing air emergency in the national capital.

In response to the air pollution crisis, the Environment Minister has scheduled a meeting involving all Delhi ministers at 12:30 p.m. to deliberate on the issue and explore potential strategies.

The Delhi government has formally requested the IIT team to prepare a comprehensive plan, which will be submitted to the Supreme Court on Friday. The court is currently addressing a range of petitions that seek immediate action to combat the hazardous air conditions in Delhi. In the event that the Supreme Court grants approval, both the Delhi government and the central government will proceed to implement the artificial rain plan.

The IIT team has emphasized the necessity of a minimum 40% cloud cover to facilitate artificial rain, and there is a potential for such cloud cover on November 20-21. Should the plan gain the court’s approval, a pilot study can be conducted.

During the upcoming hearing in the Supreme Court on Friday, this proposal will be presented, allowing the court to review it. If granted approval, the Delhi government will collaborate with the central government to obtain the necessary permissions and initiate the plan.

The Supreme Court has previously expressed serious concern about the pollution in Delhi, underscoring the imperative of prioritizing public health and urging states such as Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan to cease stubble burning immediately.