Delhi’s air quality once again dipped to dangerous levels this winter, forcing the government and scientists to turn toward innovative, emergency solutions — one of them being artificial rain through cloud seeding. The much-awaited trial, however, ended without success, raising questions about feasibility, funding, and India’s readiness for such weather modification technology.
This detailed report explores why the cloud-seeding experiment failed, the science behind it, IIT Kanpur’s involvement, and what the ₹30 crore requirement really means for Delhi’s pollution-control strategy.
The Vision: Making Delhi Rain When the Sky Won’t
The idea of bringing artificial rain to Delhi wasn’t new. For years, policymakers, environmental scientists, and citizens have discussed using cloud-seeding technology to reduce particulate matter and bring temporary relief from smog.
In 2025, when pollution in Delhi’s AQI crossed 450 in several regions, the Delhi government approved a ₹1 crore pilot project led by IIT Kanpur, with technical support from India Meteorological Department (IMD) and DGCA.
The goal was simple yet ambitious — to trigger rainfall over Delhi’s skies and wash away toxic pollutants suspended in the air.
What Exactly Is Cloud Seeding?
Cloud seeding is a weather-modification technique that involves dispersing substances like silver iodide, sodium chloride, or dry ice into the atmosphere to encourage cloud formation and precipitation.
The process requires:
- Pre-existing clouds with sufficient moisture.
- Aerial spraying aircraft equipped with seeding flares.
- Favorable meteorological conditions, like humidity and temperature balance.
When successful, the process can increase rainfall by 10–20%, temporarily improving air quality and visibility.
However, the Delhi trial highlighted a harsh reality — no technology can create clouds out of thin air.
The Plan in Delhi: How the Cloud-Seeding Trial Was Launched
Key Features & Timeline
- In early 2025, Delhi’s Environment Department announced that cloud-seeding would be attempted in collaboration with IIT Kanpur.
- The initial plan comprised five sorties/trials, each covering roughly 100 sq km and lasting about 90 minutes.
- The planned window for the first set of trials was between July 4 and 11 (depending on favorable weather) covering outer-areas of Delhi (e.g., Bawana, Rohini, Kundli, Burari).
- Clearances: Obtaining NOCs (No Objection Certificates) from multiple authorities (DGCA, AAI, MoD, MoEF, etc) delayed the process.
- Technical aspects: Use of modified aircraft by IIT Kanpur, spraying of silver-iodide/rock-salt formulations.
- Budget: Initial outlay around ₹3.21 crore (₹2.75 crore for trials + ₹0.66 crore setup) approved by Delhi cabinet.
Objectives & Expectations
- To induce rainfall over targeted zones in Delhi-NCR and thereby wash down particulate matter (PM2.5 / PM10).
- To test the feasibility of artificial rain as a tool for air-pollution mitigation in large urban settings.
- To gather data on effectiveness, cost, side-effects, and scalability.
- If successful, scale up the plan during peak smog season (October-February) across wider areas.
Official Position
Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa called this a “historic” step, noting that approvals were in place for conducting cloud-seeding trials in Delhi. Meanwhile, IIT Kanpur provided the technical backing and aircraft platform for the trials
Why the Delhi Artificial Rain Trial Failed
1 Lack of Suitable Clouds
The biggest obstacle was unfavorable weather conditions. According to IIT Kanpur scientists, the atmosphere over Delhi lacked the right kind of moisture-laden clouds necessary for successful seeding.
Without the right cloud base and density, even the most advanced cloud-seeding operations fail to generate rainfall.
2 Limited Budget and Scale
The ₹1 crore allocation covered only the pilot stage — including aircraft hiring, chemicals, and logistics. Experts estimate that to seed the entire NCR effectively, ₹30 crore or more would be needed.
The trial’s small coverage area significantly reduced its success probability.
3 Short-Term Planning
Cloud seeding isn’t a one-time fix; it needs continuous observation, data collection, and multiple trials. Delhi’s attempt, constrained by time and budget, was executed as an emergency measure rather than a scientific program.
4 Regulatory Delays
Clearances from the DGCA for aircraft movement and from IMD for meteorological monitoring delayed operations. By the time permissions came through, cloud conditions had changed.
5 Lack of Coordination Between Agencies
Although IIT Kanpur, IMD, and the Delhi government collaborated, experts admitted that coordination gaps and differing administrative protocols hindered smooth execution.
The Science and Cost Behind Artificial Rain
To seed rain across Delhi and NCR, experts estimate:
- At least two aircrafts with advanced flare systems.
- Chemicals and logistics costing ₹10–15 crore.
- Operational monitoring by IMD over multiple phases.
- Pre-monsoon and post-winter trials for data accuracy.
This brings the total projected budget close to ₹30 crore, aligning with the IIT Kanpur proposal for a full-scale artificial rain plan.
IIT Kanpur’s Role and Findings
IIT Kanpur has been at the forefront of cloud-seeding research in India. Their prior successful tests in Maharashtra and Karnataka demonstrated the method’s potential when weather conditions are favorable.
For Delhi, the team used twin aircraft to disperse the seeding agents, supported by radar data from IMD.
However, the test flights over Pusa, Dwarka, and North Delhi didn’t result in measurable rainfall.
Professors involved in the project stated that Delhi’s dry winter atmosphere and low cloud base altitude made the operation unviable.
Delhi’s Pollution Crisis and Urgency for Solutions
Delhi has consistently ranked among the world’s most polluted capitals.
Each winter, the mix of vehicular emissions, industrial smoke, and stubble burning creates a toxic haze that traps pollutants close to the surface.
Despite policy interventions like:
- Odd-Even vehicle scheme
- Smog towers and dust control measures
- Restrictions on construction and firecrackers
… air quality remains critical.
This is why the government hoped artificial rain could offer temporary relief, especially before festivals or school reopenings.
Why ₹30 Crore Is Being Estimated – Understanding the Scale
The figure of ₹30 crore appears in recent reporting as the rough budget required for a full-scale artificial-rain programme in Delhi. Here’s why:
- To cover larger geographical area (entire Delhi plus NCR fringe) requiring multiple aircraft sorties, multiple days and repeated operations.
- To procure, store and deploy more seeding agents (silver iodide, salt formulations), calibrated aircraft fleets, ground-logistics, monitoring systems.
- To integrate continuous monitoring of air quality, rainfall volumes, health-impact data.
- To fund the coordination infrastructure (IMD, CPCB, aviation, meteorology, state governments) and contingency buffers.
- To allow repeated interventions across multiple days/weeks rather than a one-off trial.
In short, the jump from ₹3 crore pilot to ₹30 crore full-scale reflects the recognition that meaningful artificial-rain intervention is resource-intensive and must be sustained rather than episodic.
International Examples: How Other Nations Use Cloud Seeding
Countries like China, UAE, and the United States have been using cloud-seeding successfully for decades.
- China expanded rainfall by nearly 15% during the 2008 Beijing Olympics to control pollution.
- UAE has an ongoing national program with 70+ cloud-seeding operations yearly.
- Thailand and Indonesia use the method during drought seasons.
These examples prove that cloud seeding can work, but only with long-term investment and infrastructure, not one-time trials.
What Lies Ahead: Delhi’s Next Steps
Delhi’s Environment Minister has indicated that a fresh proposal will be submitted for funding a full-scale ₹30 crore cloud-seeding project in collaboration with the Central Government.
Plans include:
- Setting up a dedicated meteorological monitoring center for the NCR.
- Training Indian Air Force pilots for weather-modification flights.
- Expanding seeding coverage to Noida, Gurugram, and Ghaziabad.
- Integrating AI-based cloud prediction models for accurate targeting.
If approved, trials could resume in late 2025 with improved preparation and resources.
Expert Opinions: Lessons from the Failure
- Meteorologists emphasize patience and data accumulation before judging success.
- Environmentalists urge that artificial rain should complement, not replace, emission control measures.
- Policy analysts recommend integrating the project into India’s National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) for steady funding.
A Balancing Act Between Hope and Reality
While the failure of the 2025 Delhi artificial rain trial is disappointing, it has opened crucial scientific insights.
The project underscored that technology alone cannot solve pollution, but it can become a supporting tool when used systematically.
As India advances toward climate resilience and sustainable urban policies, such experiments will play an essential role in shaping national development strategies under NITI Aayog and the Environment Ministry.
Actionable Guidance: What Residents, Professionals & Policymakers Can Do
For Residents & Businesses
- Stay informed: Follow updates on air-quality indices and government initiatives (including cloud-seeding experiments).
- Demand accountability: Ask local authorities for data on interventions — rainfall triggered, pollutant reduction achieved, cost incurred.
- Adopt source-reduction habits: Use public transport, avoid crop-burning support, reduce vehicular idle time — contributing to the broader fight.
- Be realistic: Recognise that artificial-rain is not magic — it complements but does not replace structural reforms.
For Environmental Professionals & NGOs
- Monitor and audit: Collect independent data on seeding trials, local air-quality changes, rainfall vs pollutant wash-out correlation.
- Advocate integrated policy: Link cloud-seeding to larger emission reductions, dust control, construction regulation, interstate crop-burning policies.
- Educate stakeholders: Help citizens understand the limits and potentials of weather-modification technologies so expectations are calibrated.
For Policymakers & Government Bodies
- Allocate realistic budgets: If scaling up to ₹30 crore or more, ensure cost-benefit analysis and comparisons with alternative interventions.
- Ensure weather-readiness: Seeding must be scheduled only when meteorological preconditions (humidity, cloud-cover) are favourable; random sorties waste resources.
- Mandate monitoring & transparency: Publish public dashboards showing rainfall achieved, pollutant reductions, health outcomes, cost incurred.
- Integrate policies: Cloud-seeding must not be standalone — it should tie into transport policy, industrial emissions, crop-residue management, building-dust regulation.
- Plan for sustainability: Develop long-term intervention plans (not just seasonal) and consider regional coordination (NCR states) for holistic air-quality control.
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Why This Matters: The Bigger Picture of Urban Development in India
Delhi’s artificial-rain experiment carries significance beyond one city or one policy. It touches on:
- National development and urban livability: Air pollution undermines quality of life, increases health-care burden, and reduces productivity — thus hampering national human-capital growth.
- Innovation in governance: Will Indian cities be able to pilot novel technologies responsibly, transparently and at scale? The answers may guide India’s smart-city ambitions.
- Climate resilience and weather-modification ethics: As climate change amplifies extreme weather, more cities may consider weather-engineering tools — making Delhi’s experience a lab for policy and ethics.
- Technology vs ground-reality: The gap between scientific promise and practical utility is visible; urban issues rarely yield to quick technical fixes.
- Public trust and accountability: When high-visibility interventions underperform, they risk disillusionment, which can hinder future reforms and citizen engagement.
Delhi’s failed artificial rain experiment isn’t the end of the story — it’s a reminder of what India must do to prepare for an era of climate adaptation.
As IIT Kanpur and government agencies plan new trials, the dream of rain-washed Delhi skies might yet become a reality — not through miracles, but through science, collaboration, and persistence.
