Karnataka turns to cloud seeding amid rainfall deficit and drought conditions

The Karnataka government has constituted two committees to monitor and provide technical guidance for its cloud-seeding programme amid below-normal monsoon rainfall and drought-like conditions across much of the state.

The initiative is being undertaken during 2026–27 to address the rainfall deficit and support standing crops through the use of weather-modification technology, officials said.

An order issued on 28 August provided for the formation of a Monitoring Committee and a Technical Advisory and Evaluation Committee. The panels will work to ensure that cloud-seeding operations are conducted scientifically and effectively in areas experiencing inadequate rainfall.

According to a statement from the office of Water Resources Minister N Chaluvarayaswamy, the Monitoring Committee will supervise, review and track the overall implementation of the programme.

The state’s Additional Chief Secretary and Development Commissioner will chair the panel, while the Managing Director of the Karnataka Irrigation Corporation will serve as its Member Secretary.

The six-member committee will include the Additional Chief Secretary of the Water Resources Department, the Principal Secretary of the Revenue Department’s disaster management division and secretaries from the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj and Water Resources departments.

The Technical Advisory and Evaluation Committee will offer technical assistance and guidance to the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre on different aspects of the programme.

The Director of the KSNDMC will chair the technical committee, which will include eight members, a Member Secretary and a Special Invitee. Representatives or directors from the Agriculture Department, India Meteorological Department, Karnataka State Remote Sensing Applications Centre and other relevant institutions will be part of the panel.

The project is estimated to cost Rs 28.52 crore and will be implemented over 60 days, covering approximately 200 hours of operations. Flights will be conducted daily between 8 am and 6 pm.

The Water Resources Department will undertake the cloud-seeding exercise across Karnataka’s four revenue divisions. Officials expect the operations to generate rainfall within a radius of about 15 kilometres from the areas where seeding is conducted.

Cloud seeding is a weather-modification method in which substances are dispersed into suitable clouds to influence precipitation. The technique can be used to increase rainfall or snowfall, reduce hail and disperse fog.

With PTI inputs