**Executive Summary**
The document details the initiatives undertaken by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to address the impact of climate change on India's weather patterns. It highlights advancements in weather forecasting models, observational systems, and collaborations with international programs. This information was submitted on 5th February 2026.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Monitoring and Forecasting:**
* The IMD, in coordination with other centers and State Governments, monitors, detects, forecasts, and issues timely warnings for severe weather events.
* Efforts have been made to improve the detection of weather events through the expansion of AWS/ARG networks and Doppler Weather Radars (DWRs).
* 47 DWRs are operational, covering 87% of the country's area.
* **Mission Mausam:**
* MoES launched Mission Mausam to make India a "Weather-ready and Climate-smart" nation, aiming to mitigate the impacts of climate change and extreme weather events.
* **Bharat Forecast System (BharatFS):**
* An advanced computer simulation model has been developed and is operational at a 6 km spatial resolution.
* It provides rainfall predictions up to 10 days, covering short and medium-range forecasts.
* Generates weather forecasts at the panchayat or cluster of panchayats level.
* High-performance computing facilities (Arunika and Arka) have been increased to integrate voluminous data and run meso-scale, regional, and global models.
* **Mithuna Forecast System (Mithuna-FS):**
* A new-generation global coupled model that integrates atmosphere, ocean, land surface, and sea ice.
* Operates at 12-km resolution, marking advancement in medium-range localized weather forecasting.
* Includes a 4-km high-resolution regional model for monsoon dynamics, cyclones, and mesoscale events, and a 330-m hyper-resolution urban model for fog, visibility, and air-quality forecasting over Delhi.
* Models assimilate data from radars, satellites, AWS, profilers, and ocean systems to enable panchayat-level predictions.
* **Decision Support System (DSS):**
* IMD developed an end-to-end GIS-based DSS for the timely detection and monitoring of all-weather hazards.
* **IITM Earth System Model (IITM-ESM):**
* Developed for studying long-term climate variability and change, especially for the South Asian region and monsoon.
* Has contributed to global climate change assessments.
* **International Collaboration:**
* India actively collaborates with international programs like CMIP and WCRP to improve weather and climate models.
* The Centre for Climate Change Research (CCCR) at IITM, Pune, has infrastructure to disseminate global and regional climate model data to support various stakeholders.
**Impact Analysis**
**Stakeholders: Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) and India Meteorological Department (IMD)**
* **Impact:**
* Responsible for implementing and maintaining advanced weather forecasting systems.
* Engaged in collaborative efforts and data dissemination.
* **Action Required:**
* Continue to develop and refine weather forecasting models.
* Maintain and expand observational systems.
* Foster international collaborations and disseminate climate data effectively.
**Stakeholders: State Governments and other Centers (MHA, NDMA)**
* **Impact:**
* Benefit from improved weather forecasts and timely warnings for disaster preparedness.
* **Action Required:**
* Coordinate with IMD and MoES for effective disaster management strategies.
* Utilize weather information for local planning and response.
**Stakeholders: Vulnerability, Impacts, and Adaptation (VIA) Communities**
* **Impact:**
* Enhanced access to regional climate information for informed decision-making.
* **Action Required:**
* Utilize disseminated climate data for vulnerability assessments, impact studies, and adaptation planning.
**Stakeholders: Public**
* **Impact:**
* Improved weather forecasting and early warning systems for increased safety and preparedness.
* **Action Required:**
* Stay informed about weather forecasts and warnings.
* Take necessary precautions to mitigate the impacts of severe weather events.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES): The primary ministry responsible for initiatives related to climate change and weather patterns in India, including the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
India Meteorological Department (IMD): Operates under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) and is responsible for monitoring, detecting, and forecasting weather events, as well as issuing timely warnings.
Mission Mausam: An initiative launched by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) with the goal of making India a 'Weather-ready and Climate-smart' nation.
Bharat Forecast System (BharatFS): An advanced computer simulation model developed under Mission Mausam for weather forecasting.
Delhi: Location where a 330-m hyper-resolution urban model is used for fog, visibility, and air-quality forecasting.
Ministry of Earth Sciences
PARLIAMENT QUESTION: IMPACT OF CLIMATE
CHANGE ON WEATHER PATTERNS
Posted On: 05 FEB 2026 11:42AM by PIB Delhi
Various initiatives have been undertaken to effectively address the potential impacts of climate change on
India’s weather patterns, especially the increasing frequencies of various severe weather events, e.g., heavy
rainfall events, heat waves, etc. The India Meteorological Department (IMD), under the Ministry of Earth
Sciences (MoES), in coordination with other centers and State Government, Ministry of Home Affairs
(MHA), NDMA, is working round the clock to monitor, detect, and provide forecasts and issue timely
warnings at a more granular scale for these severe weather events and their hazards. For improving the
detection of these events at a more granular, temporal scale, there has been a quantum jump in observational
systems, with the expansion of AWS/ARG networks, Doppler Weather Radars (DWRs), etc. Currently, 47
DWRs are in operation across India, with 87% of the total area of the country coming under radar coverage.
Additionally, the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) launched Mission Mausam with the goal of making
India a “Weather-ready and Climate-smart” nation, aiming to mitigate the impacts of climate change and
extreme weather events.
Under the Mission Mausam, the Bharat Forecast System (BharatFS), an advanced computer
simulation model, has already been developed, and it has been operational at a very high spatial
resolution of 6 km. It also has the capability to provide predictions of rainfall events up to 10 days,
covering the short and medium-range forecasts. Due to its higher resolution and improved dynamics,
it generates weather forecasts at the panchayat or cluster of panchayats level. To further support the
operations of high-resolution model simulations in real-time, the high-performance computing
facilities (Arunika and Arka) have been substantially increased to integrate voluminous data and run
meso-scale, regional, and global models.
Further, a major achievement is the introduction of the Mithuna Forecast System (Mithuna-FS). This
new-generation global coupled model integrates the atmosphere, ocean, land surface, and sea ice
components with state-of-the-art physics and an upgraded data assimilation framework. Currently,
this forecasting system operates at 12-km resolution, marking a significant advancement in India’s
medium-range localized weather forecasting capability. The Mithuna-FS suite also includes –
A 4-km high-resolution regional model for accurate simulation of monsoon dynamics, cyclones, and
mesoscale extreme events over the Indian subcontinent;
A 330-m hyper-resolution urban model for fog, visibility, and air-quality forecasting over the Delhi
region.
These models operate on the supercomputer and assimilate dense observational inputs from radars,
satellites, automatic weather stations (AWS), profilers, and ocean systems. Together, they enable
high-quality, panchayat-level predictions of rainfall, thunderstorms, fog, heat stress, and pollutants.
These models under the Mission Mausam are specifically configured for India’s diverse climate
regimes. For effective utilization of observational and NWP products and for providing timely earlywarning against all types of severe weather, IMD has developed an end-to-end GIS-based Decision
Support System (DSS), which serves as the front end of the early warning systems for the timely
detection and monitoring of all-weather hazards.
(b) The IITM Earth System Model (IITM-ESM) is developed in-house at the Indian Institute of
Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, for studying the long-term climate variability and change with
a special focus on the South Asian region and monsoon. IITM-ESM has contributed to the Coupled
Model Intercomparison Project for understanding the increasing climate extremes over the globe and
over the Indian region. IITM-ESM has also contributed to climate change assessments, including the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Sixth Assessment Report, the first from India, and
National Assessment Report “Assessment of Climate Change over the Indian Region” by the
Ministry of Earth Sciences. Assessment of Climate Change over the Indian Region
(https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-981-15-4327-2), provides important information on the
regional climate change over India.
(c) India is actively collaborating with international programs like the Coupled Model
Intercomparison Project (CMIP), the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP), the World
Weather Research Program, etc., on weather and climate research and to develop and improve
weather and climate models. These models aim to simulate and predict the interactions between the
atmosphere, ocean, and polar regions, crucial for understanding regional extremes and climate
impacts. These collective actions contribute to a more robust understanding of Earth System
interactions, which is essential for enhancing India’s resilience to extreme weather and climate
change impacts. The Centre for Climate Change Research (CCCR) established by MoES at the
IITM, Pune has set up infrastructure (ESGF data node) that facilitate the dissemination of the global
and regional climate model’s based data in order to support various stakeholders (vulnerability,
impacts and adaptation (VIA) communities) for informed use of regional climate information. The
global climate change projections are generated using the IITM-ESM as part of the Coupled Model
Intercomparison Project and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Regional climate
change projections over South Asia are generated as part of the Co-ordinated Regional Downscaling
Activity (CORDEX). These data sets are shared globally through the ESGF node at IITM and can be
accessed via the following link;
https://esg-cccr.tropmet.res.in/thredds/catalog/esg_dataroot6/catalog.html
https://esg-cccr.tropmet.res.in/thredds/catalog/esg_dataroot4/cordex/catalog.html
This information was submitted by Minister of State ( Independent Charge) Earth Sciences
Dr. Jitendra Singh in Rajya Sabha on 5th February 2026.
*****
NKR/JP
(Release ID: 2223579) Visitor Counter : 208
Read this release in: Urdu , ही , Tamil