India Meteorological Department Launches Impact-Based Cyclone Warning System

On October 12, 2020 India Meteorological Department(IMD) launched a dynamic,
impact-based cyclone warning system to reduce economic losses and damage to
property caused by the cyclones that hit Indian coast annually. The system has been
commissioned from this cyclone season (October-December).

• The announcement of the launch was made by Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Director-
  General(DG) of IMD on October 6, 2020 while giving presentation on ‘Chasing the
  Cyclones’, organised as part of World Space Week(October 4-10) celebrations by
  the Indian Society of Remote Sensing (ISRS)’s Delhi chapter.

Key Info 
i.As part of the new system, location-wise or district-specific designed warnings will be
prepared and disseminated, which also accounts for the local population, infrastructure,
settlements, land use and other elements.

• IMD before the launch of this system was giving a warning about the kind of
  damage that can be expected.

ii.The cartographic, geological and hydrological data that are available for the district
concerned, will be extensively used by all disaster management agencies.

Web-based Dynamic Composite Risk Atlas 

National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) under the project, entitled National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project (NCRMP) is developing a Web-based Dynamic Composite Risk Atlas (Web-DCRA) in collaboration with IMD and state Governments of coastal states.

Online pre-cyclone Exercise meeting Held under the chairmanship of IMD’s DG

i.IMD, under the chairmanship of Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, has organized an online pre-cyclone exercise meeting, to review the preparedness, take stock of requirements, plan for the cyclone season October-December, 2020 and share IMD’s new initiatives with stakeholders.

ii.National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF), Indian Air Force (IAF), Indian Navy (IN) among others participated in the meeting.

General Info

i.In the pre- and post-monsoon months that are known for cyclone genesis, the major impact can be seen.

ii.A favourable atmosphere and sea conditions for the occurrence of cyclonic storms is offered by the post-monsoon months of October and November. The storms particularly affect coastal Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal in east coast and Gujarat in west coast.

iii.The storms during October to December, especially in the Bay of Bengal, are known to destroy the eastern coast of the country and also damage property.

Additional Info

Cyclones are multi-hazardous in nature and so cause heavy rain, strong winds and storm surge over the affected region simultaneously. This is along with the property loss.

Gist about India Meteorological Department

IMD is functioning under the Ministry of Earth Sciences(MoES), Government of India. It is headquartered in New Delhi.

Recent Related News:

i.On June 12 2020, The Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Uddhav Thackeray and Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare, Science & Technology, Earth Sciences, Dr Harsh Vardhan jointly launched the state-of-the-art Integrated Flood Warning System (I-FLOWS) in Mumbai with an aim to alleviate and monitor the flood activities by providing early warning in the city during high rainfall and cyclone events. 

ii.On February 25, 2020 The Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad has launched 3 new ocean based specialised products for the benefit of fishermen & people living in the coastal areas of South India. The 3 warning systems are Small Advisory and Forecast Services System (SVAS), Swell Surge Forecast System (SSFS) and Algal Bloom Information Service (ABIS).

About India Meteorological Department(IMD):
IMD is functioning under the Ministry of Earth Sciences(MoES), Government of India. 
HeadQuarters– New Delhi, India
Director-General(DG)– Mrutyunjay Mohapatra

About Ministry of Earth Sciences(MoES):
Union Minister– Harsh Vardhan(Constituency- Chandni Chowk, New Delhi)