NEW DELHI, Oct 28 — The Delhi government on Tuesday carried out its first-ever cloud-seeding trial in a bid to combat the capital’s worsening air pollution, marking the start of a series of experiments that may eventually shape a long-term plan to induce artificial rain.
Officials said the aircraft took off from Kanpur and flew over areas including Burari and Karol Bagh to conduct the half-hour trial. “The Cessna aircraft released eight fire flares as part of the exercise,” Delhi minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said in a video statement.
Sirsa said the operation was conducted in collaboration with IIT Kanpur, which had earlier assessed that rain could occur within 15 minutes to four hours after seeding, depending on atmospheric conditions. “The second trial will take place later today in the outer parts of Delhi,” he added.
According to the government, around 9–10 such trials are planned over the next several days. The decision on whether to expand the effort into a full-scale program will depend on the success of these initial runs.
The Delhi government had signed a memorandum of understanding with IIT Kanpur on September 25 to conduct five cloud-seeding trials in northwest Delhi. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) granted permission for the operations between October 1 and November 30.
A test flight was conducted last week over Burari to assess feasibility. During that run, small quantities of silver iodide and sodium chloride — compounds used to induce rainfall — were released. However, officials said low atmospheric humidity of less than 20 percent, compared with the required 50 percent, prevented rainfall formation.
“This initiative is part of our broader winter pollution mitigation plan,” Sirsa noted, adding that the government hopes successful trials could bring temporary relief from the thick smog that blankets the city each year.
