IMD weather TV plan shelved

According to IMD director general Dr Ajit Tyagi,none of the news channels showed interest in tying up with the Met department for a dedicated 24-hour weather channel,and hence the plan had to be dropped. “We were keen to start a full-fledged weather channel with the help of data provided by our centres. However,the much-discussed project by the ministry will have to wait. We plan to start weather capsules instead,” Tyagi told The Indian Express.

He said that these capsules would be different from the usual weather forecasts that are relayed after news bulletins. “We want to make it more comprehensive and provide all relevant details. We want to tailor-make these capsules for any event and they will be relayed accordingly,” he said.

The Ministry of Earth Sciences has already had two brainstorming sessions last month as to how these bulletin can be readied by the IMD,which would help production houses come out with a finished product for telecast. “Whether it be the forthcoming IPL or anything else,the IMD can ready capsules specific to the event. We have enough data from all centres to prepare these capsules,” Tyagi said.

The pan-Indian weather capsule will be prepared mainly by IMD’s Pune and Delhi offices,and with the help of modern equipment as the department has received Rs 300-crore grant this fiscal,said Tyagi. IMD has already procured equipment for accurate measurement of rain by setting up rain gauges,automatic weather stations as well as taking the help of INSAT 3-D.

In the earlier plan for the weather channel,the broadcaster were to put in the money and get the management responsibility while IMD provided the content.