Congress slams Delhi govt’s Rs 34-cr cloud seeding experiment as ‘Expensive Illusion’

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday criticized the Delhi government’s winter cloud seeding experiment, calling it an “expensive illusion” that offers little substance in tackling the capital’s worsening air crisis.

The Congress leader said the Rs 34-crore initiative has been deemed largely ineffective by experts, including those at the Centre for Atmospheric Sciences, IIT Delhi.

Advertisement

“Winter cloud seeding certainly looks dramatic and gives the impression that something substantial is being done,” Ramesh said in a post on X, further asserting: “But when overwhelming scientific consensus raises doubts about its efficacy, is it wise to treat it as anything more than a headline-grabbing measure?”

Ramesh pointed out that three specialized agencies, including the Commission for Air Quality Management and the Indian Meteorological Department, had advised against winter cloud seeding to improve Delhi’s air quality. The IIT Delhi report further supports this, stating that winter cloud seeding will not significantly improve Delhi’s air quality.

The report highlights that Delhi’s winter atmosphere is climatologically unsuitable for consistent cloud seeding due to low moisture and saturation levels. Even if successful, induced rainfall would only provide a brief respite of 1–3 days before pollution levels rebound.

Experts suggest that emission reduction remains the most viable long-term solution to Delhi’s air crisis.