Established in 1875, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) will complete 150 years of service on 15 January 2025. IMD was created for systematic observation, regular reporting, and scientific forecasting of weather in the Indian subcontinent.

INDIA METEOROLOGICAL DEPARTMENT works under the Ministry of Earth Sciences.

In the year 1875, the Government of India established the India Meteorological Department, bringing all meteorological work in the country under a central authority. Mr. H. F. Blanford  appointed first Meteorological Reporter to the Government of India. The first Director General of Observatories, Sir John Eliot, appointed in May 1889 at Calcutta headquarters. The headquarters of IMD later shifted to Shimla, then to Poona (now Pune) and finally to New Delhi.Dr. Mrutyunjay Mohapatra is the current Director General of Meteorology.

“Mission Mausam”

the Ministry of Earth Sciences has taken up a national initiative for implementation during 2024-2026. The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Honourable Prime Minister, has approved ‘Mission Mausam’ with an outlay of Rs. 2,000 crore over two years.

Aims and Objectives:

The multi-faceted transformative approach, namely “Mission Mausam,” has the goal of making Bharat a “Weather-ready and Climate-smart” nation to mitigate the impact of climate change and extreme weather events and strengthen the resilience of communities.

The Phase-I of Mission Mausam implemented during 2024-26. The Phase-II of Mission Mausam implemented during 2026-31 in the next financial cycle.

The objectives of the proposed “Mission Mausam” include:

 Developing cutting-edge weather surveillance technologies and systems.

 Implementing higher-resolution atmospheric observations with better

temporal and spatial sampling/coverage.

 Deploying next-generation radars and satellites with advanced instrument

payloads.

 Establishing high-performance computing (HPC) systems.

 Improving understanding of weather and climate processes and enhancing

prediction capabilities.

 Developing improved earth system models and data-driven methods (use of

AI/ML).

 Technologies for weather management.

 Developing a state-of-the-art dissemination system for last-mile connectivity.