Delhi govt working on flight clearances, aircraft for cloud-seeding

Delhi govt working on flight clearances, aircraft for cloud-seeding exercise

Delhi NCR

- June 18, 2026

| By : PTI |

The Delhi government is currently working on securing flight permissions, arranging aircraft and pilots, and coordinating with multiple agencies for a proposed cloud-seeding exercise, officials said on Thursday.

Cloud seeding is a weather-modification technique aimed at enhancing a cloud’s ability to produce rain. It involves dispersing substances such as silver iodide and other compounds into suitable clouds to encourage the formation of raindrops or ice crystals.

According to the officials, a significant part of the work currently underway relates to operational preparations, an area that emerged as a major challenge during earlier cloud-seeding attempts in Delhi.

While the scientific and technical elements of the project are being developed by IIT Kanpur, authorities are also focused on ensuring that practical issues do not hinder the exercise when suitable weather conditions arise.

“During previous attempts, securing flight permissions, arranging aircraft and pilots and coordinating take-off schedules within a limited time window became a major hurdle,” an official told PTI.

The official added that cloud-seeding operations require multiple clearances and coordination among several agencies, leaving little room for delays once favourable meteorological conditions develop.

Therefore, authorities are striving to put most of these arrangements in place in advance rather than waiting for the weather window to open.

“Work is also underway to identify and coordinate the agencies and personnel that would be involved in the exercise. The aim is to ensure that when the required weather conditions are available, the operation can be carried out without administrative or logistical bottlenecks,” the official added.

The experiences from earlier attempts have highlighted the importance of advance planning, officials noted. Since cloud seeding can only occur under specific weather conditions, and the available window is often brief, any delays in obtaining permissions, deploying aircraft, or crew availability could impact the feasibility of the exercise.

IIT Kanpur, which is providing technical support for the project, is handling several aspects of the proposed exercise, including research and operational planning, among others.

The institute is also examining the conditions under which cloud seeding can be undertaken and helping determine possible timelines for the exercise, they said.

According to an official familiar with the matter, Delhi may witness another cloud-seeding trial this summer.

Two rounds of cloud-seeding trials were conducted in the national capital in October last year following a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Delhi Environment Department and IIT Kanpur on September 25, 2025. The experiment, however, did not result in rainfall in the city.

During last year’s trials, eight chemical flares containing silver iodide and sodium chloride were released during each operation.

The Delhi government later released a report stating that the trials helped decrease particulate matter levels at targeted locations.

The Economic Survey of Delhi 2025-26, released on March 23, also said that more cloud-seeding trials would be conducted in consultation with the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The survey described the exercise as a short-term emergency measure aimed at generating artificial rainfall to help disperse and reduce ambient air pollution levels.