Delhi prepares for its first-ever artificial rain to combat air pollution: Here's how it will work

IN a first for the national capital, Delhi is set to witness artificial rain with a goal of reducing air pollution in the city.

The flight plan for the cloud seeding operation has been submitted by IIT Kanpur to the India Meteorological Department (IMD) in Pune for technical coordination and is set to be implemented between July 4 and 11, PTI reported.

Pollution control effort

Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa announced on Saturday that the "conditions are not suitable for cloud seeding until July 3, but a flight window has been proposed between July 4 and 11."

He added that a proposal has also been sent to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), requesting the trial to be conducted at a later date.
Also Read | Rain lashes parts of Delhi, IMD forecasts more showers in next 2 hours

"Our aim is to give Delhiites clean air," Sirsa emphasised, asserting that it's the most basic right of every resident, and the government is exploring every possible solution to achieve it.

"That's why we're taking this bold step of artificial rain. We are hopeful it will bring meaningful change," he added.

Addressing political accusations

Earlier, AAP Delhi chief Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that BJP and the Centre hindered the city's pollution-control efforts and mocked the proposal for artificial rain during peak winter pollution.

Responding to those allegations, Sirsa clarified, "We were the ones who signed the MoU first, made all the payments to IIT Kanpur, and applied for the necessary approvals because we want to take real action."

"They didn't do anything except talk about artificial rain. We, on the other hand, have worked sincerely. That's why, within just four months of forming the government, we are at the stage of finalising the date for Delhi's first artificial rain," he added.

How does artificial rain work ?

The project, titled ‘Technology Demonstration and Evaluation of Cloud Seeding as an Alternative for Delhi NCR Pollution Mitigation’, will involve five aircraft sorties.

Each sortie will last around 90 minutes and cover approximately 100 square kilometres over low-security air zones in northwest and outer Delhi.

A modified Cessna aircraft will disperse a scientifically formulated seeding mixture using flare-based systems.

This unique formulation, developed by IIT Kanpur,, consists of silver iodide nanoparticles, iodised salt, and rock salt, designed to catalyse artificial rain by accelerating droplet formation in moisture-rich clouds which will effectively wash away pollutants from the environment.