Coming up in Chandigarh: ‘Radiosonde’ for better fog prediction
IMD Chandigarh director Surender Paul said a radiosonde system for Chandigarh was part of the Har Ghar Mausam mission announced by the central government
Chandigarh will soon get a radiosonde system at India Meteorological Department’s station in Sector 39 that will help improve fog forecasts for the region.

This, along with other new weather prediction features, was announced during the department’s 150th anniversary celebrations on Tuesday.
While an event was organised in New Delhi where Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the officials, it was livecast in Chandigarh, along with a separate local programme and panel discussion.
Speaking on the sidelines of the event, IMD Chandigarh director Surender Paul said a radiosonde system for Chandigarh was part of the Har Ghar Mausam mission announced by the central government. “It will make it possible to measure the temperature of different layers of the atmosphere. It will be especially helpful in winter, allowing vertical readings of the atmosphere that will help us understand fog formation better. Fog forecasts will be more accurate, with precise prediction of its duration,” Paul explained.
Better tab on pollution
The system will also be used to study air pollution in the city. “Weather plays an important role in dispelling air pollutants. We will offer data and meteorological support to better understand air pollution,” Paul added.
UT environment director TC Nautiyal, chief guest at the event, said, “We take a lot of assistance from IMD for factors like the forecast and the wind speed as air quality depends on it. Chandigarh is a small city with a significant green cover, yet it suffers from poor air quality. Only the department can properly explain why this is so,” he said.
Region to get two new doppler radars
The Prime Minister also announced two new doppler radars for the region. A new radar will be installed in Amritsar for Punjab and in Hisar for Haryana. Currently, Haryana has to rely majorly on the doppler radar in New Delhi for its forecasts. For Chandigarh, IMD depends on the doppler radar installed in Patiala.
Paul said a doppler radar, with a range of around 150 km, was the most accurate for weather forecasts and will significantly improve forecasts for the region. Interestingly, IMD will also be able to predict forecasts for parts of Pakistan with the help of the upcoming doppler radar in Amritsar.
Two new IMD observatories in tricity
Following the IMD director general Mrutyunjay Mohapatra’s visit to Panjab University a few months back, when he had asked for setting up more observatories in the tricity, IMD is currently in the process of opening two new observatories.
Speaking about this, Paul said they were planning to open an observatory at Panjab University and another either in Manimajra or near Chandimandir. “It will take some time before they become functional. The city already has three observatories in Sector 7, Sector 39 and the airport. There is also one automatic weather station each in Mohali and Panchkula,” he added.
