New Delhi

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai has urged Union Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav to quickly arrange a meeting with key stakeholders to discuss cloud seeding as a potential solution for Delhi’s winter air pollution. In his request, Rai emphasized the urgency of evaluating this technique, especially given Delhi’s severe pollution problems each November. He highlighted that cloud seeding requires prior approvals from various government agencies.

Rai has proposed an immediate gathering of representatives from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Delhi Government, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), India Meteorological Department (IMD), and other relevant bodies to discuss the feasibility and necessary permissions for cloud seeding.

In 2023, the Delhi Government considered cloud seeding during periods of severe air pollution and asked IIT Kanpur for a detailed review. Earlier this month, Rai led a meeting with the Environment Department and Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) to develop a winter action plan.

The Delhi government is working on a comprehensive winter action plan to tackle pollution, with a focus on 14 key areas identified during recent meetings. A joint action plan will be created following a meeting with all 33 concerned departments on September 5.