E-Paper
15 stations set up for trial in Delhi showed 6-10% less pollution, says IIT Kanpur director
IIT-Kanpur's cloud seeding trials in Delhi showed a 6-10% reduction in PM2.5 and PM10 levels, despite low rainfall due to moisture issues.
A day after IIT-Kanpur conducted two cloud seeding trials in Delhi, the institute said that data collected from 15 air quality monitoring stations it specially set up across Delhi for its cloud seeding experiment showed a reduction of about 6–10% in PM2.5 and PM10 levels following the trial.
Appearing unfazed by criticism over the lack of rain, IIT-Kanpur director Prof Manindra Agarwal said that “very useful information” was obtained in the trials that will help in future attempts.
“We had set up 15 stations in different parts of Delhi to measure pollution levels and moisture. Our data shows a reduction of about 6–10% in particulate matter concentrations,” said IIT Kanpur director Prof Manindra Agarwal. “It was our first such trial, and we obtained very useful information that will help in our next attempt.”
The professor, however, acknowledged that the team did not achieve rainfall due to low cloud moisture – around 15% – but maintained that the experiment met its scientific objectives. “If we fear failure and don’t conduct experiments, we will not make progress,” he said.
The trials covered about 300 square kilometres at an estimated cost of ₹60 lakh, which translates to around ₹20,000 per square kilometre, he said. Agarwal said the cost would scale up to about ₹25–30 crore if seeding were to be done periodically throughout the winter over larger areas, a figure he argued was modest compared to Delhi’s overall pollution control expenditure.
Agarwal said future sorties are expected to yield better results if atmospheric moisture improves in the coming weeks.
