Bhubaneswar: Odisha government Monday urged the IMD to upgrade its existing office in Bhubaneswar to a regional meteorological centre as the state has been facing several natural calamities such as cyclones and floods.
State Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari placed the demand at a function on the occasion of the India Meteorological Department’s 150 years of service.
At present the IMD has six regional centres in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Nagpur, Kolkata and Guwahati.
Stating that the weather forecast is very important to manage any disaster, Pujari said Odisha would not be able to manage the recent cyclone ‘Dana’ successfully unless IMD provides weather updates in time.
“IMD is the only source of India’s meteorological services and plays an important role in ensuring public safety, supporting economic growth and advancing scientific research,” Pujari said.
He also said, “Odisha has become a permanent address for different types of disasters. Therefore, we urge the director general of the IMD to set up a regional office of the weather department here,” the minister said.
Odisha’s Deputy Chief Minister KV Singh Deo said the IMD now makes accurate predictions on adverse weather conditions, including cyclones.
“IMD scientists are capable of pinpointing the landfall of cyclones, the eye of a storm, possible impact and others. We have realised these during the recent cyclone ‘Dana’ which made landfall on the Odisha coast,” Singh Deo said.
Based on the forecast of the IMD, the state government sent ministers to districts for preparation before the arrival of the cyclone.
“The state government stands tall with the IMD to protect the people of Odisha”, he said.
Odisha’s Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) D K Singh said making weather forecasts for Odisha is not an easy task.
“The weather scientists of IMD have done a good job during the recent cyclone and they provided all required information to the state government,” he said.
IMD DG Mrutyunjaya Mohapatra, who hails from the state, said the government of Odisha has become a model across the world in disaster management.
Incidents of lightning have emerged as the biggest disaster as more people are dying due to this as compared to other natural calamities, he said.
Around 300 people die in Odisha each year in lightning and thunderstorms.
Similarly, the temperature dropped very low in places like Daringbadi area in Kandhamal district, while several other districts like Bolangir and Mayurbhanj face high temperatures during summer, Mohapatra pointed out.
The IMD has weather monitoring stations in all 30 districts of Odisha and Doppler radars at Paradip and Gopalpur, while three more places – Balasore, Sambalpur and Bhubaneswar – will get the facility soon, the official said.
Manorama Mohanty, head of the meteorological centre, Bhubaneswar, said the IMD has witnessed remarkable growth and transformation over the last 150 years with sophisticated scientific recognition and a vast network of observations for advance forecast.
“The advent of technology brought about a revolution in meteorology for advancing its forecast capabilities,” she pointed out.
PTI
