Overview

• The Delhi Cabinet has sanctioned five cloud-seeding trials with a total budget of ₹3.21 crore, including ₹2.75 crore for operations and ₹66 lakh for infrastructure setup.
• IIT Kanpur will oversee all aspects of the trials, including planning, chemical dispersal, and scientific evaluation of the process's effectiveness and environmental impact.
• The first trial, pending no-objection certificates from 13 regulatory bodies, is scheduled for late May or June 2025 over 100 sq km on Delhi's outskirts.
• Cloud seeding, a method involving the dispersal of silver iodide into clouds to induce rainfall, is being explored as a tool to reduce airborne pollutants and alleviate water scarcity.
• This project is part of a broader strategy that includes AI-based air quality monitoring and continuous surveillance of pollution hotspots.