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From this year, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) plans to extend online training to stakeholders and persons from diverse sectors who need weather information and climate services.
Since 2017, IMD has been focusing on weather products specific to sectors that are severely affected by weather changes, such as agriculture and aviation, among others. In recent years, sectors such as tourism, highway, energy and health have been added to the list.
“We have had good interactions with users of agriculture-related products. Besides, there have been growing interactions with officials from the fields of energy and water resources, which needs to be increased further,” said DS Pai, head of Climate Research and Services, IMD, Pune.
The agency’s meteorological training centres, since last year, have also started training non-meteorologists and stakeholders so that there is greater awareness in society, and more capacity building. “Last year, we conducted short-term courses for end-users and stakeholders. People from various sectors can take up such courses and this year, we plan to conduct online courses,” said Pai.
On possible weather factors that favour locust breeding and attacks, reported across most parts of north India since April, Pai said, ” We have not conducted such studies or issued forecasts for locusts. But we can study under what conditions they migrate, and it will be a specialised study.”
