- Why in news
- On 13 August 2026, the Minister of State for Earth Sciences told Rajya Sabha about Mission Mausam, including its six verticals for 2026-31 and a 2026-27 budget estimate of ₹1,342.29 crore.
- What it is
- Mission Mausam is a Central Sector umbrella scheme of the Ministry of Earth Sciences. It aims to improve weather observation, forecasting and early warnings, and to deliver climate services. It uses radars, satellites, supercomputing and AI/ML to cut weather-related losses.
- Nature and ministry
- A Central Sector umbrella scheme of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, with the aim of a 'Weather-ready and Climate-smart Nation'.
- Launch
- The Prime Minister launched it on 14 January 2025.
- Outlay
- The Union Cabinet approved it in 2024 with ₹2,000 crore for 2024-25 and 2025-26.
- Verticals for 2026-31
- Six verticals are proposed: OBSERVE_ALL, DEVELOP, Weather_MOD, ATCOMP, FRONTIER and NEAT.
- 2026-27 budget
- The Budget Estimate is ₹1,342.29 crore: ₹855.29 crore Revenue and ₹487.00 crore Capital.
- Other instruments
- Plans include 19 Wind Profiler Systems, 25 Microwave Radiometers and 60 new GPS Radiosonde Stations.
- Alerts and apps
- IMD generates CAP alerts, sent by SMS and the NDMA's SACHET app. DAMINI (by IITM) gives lightning warnings; MEGHDOOT gives agro-met services.
Don’t confuse with Central Sector vs Centrally Sponsored: Central Sector schemes are fully funded and run by the Centre. Centrally Sponsored Schemes share costs with States.
Don’t confuse with MoES vs IMD: MoES is the ministry. The India Meteorological Department is one of its bodies that issues forecasts.
Don’t confuse with IMD vs NCMRWF: IMD issues forecasts and warnings and runs the GFS-based model. NCMRWF, Noida, runs the Mithuna model. Both sit under the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
Don’t confuse with MAUSAM app vs MEGHDOOT vs DAMINI: MAUSAM gives forecasts and warnings, MEGHDOOT gives agro-met advisories, DAMINI gives lightning alerts.
Schemes: 52 Prelims questions since 2013, 10 in Prelims 2026 alone. They test features, the period and who funds it. In Mains, 33 news-triggered questions, mostly GS3.
Why it matters
- Better lead time for cyclone, heatwave and flood warnings reduces loss of life and property.
- Helps agriculture, fisheries and aviation with location-specific forecasts.
- Denser radars and finer models improve cyclone, heavy rain and heatwave warnings, cutting loss of life and property.
- Village-level advisories help farmers plan with weather in mind.
Problems
- Dense observation networks, radars and supercomputing need sustained funding and skilled staff.
- Last-mile delivery of warnings to remote and vulnerable users remains hard.
- Heavy dependence on costly equipment and computing, and on timely installation across remote regions.
- Warnings must reach the last mile in local languages, and people must act on them.
Way forward
- Expand radar and observation coverage and link forecasts with impact-based advisories in local languages.
- Coordinate with State disaster bodies so warnings trigger early action.
- Speed up radar and observation installation and keep the network well maintained.
- Strengthen local-language dissemination through panchayats, Krishi Sakhis and apps, and train users.
Put in your answer
Sectoral benefits: Agriculture, fisheries, aviation and disaster management are named beneficiaries of better forecasts.
Forecast accuracy: IMD says forecast accuracy for severe weather events improved 40% over the previous decade.
Farmer outreach: Over 7,300 Farmers' Awareness Programmes in 373 districts reached nearly 3.67 lakh farmers.
- 2015Mains GS2 · Q19Whether Project Mausam has a strategic dimension, discussed in foreign policy context.
- 2026Mains GS1 · Q15Role of satellite technologies in climate-smart agriculture and food security.
- 2022Mains GS1 · Q5Meaning of IMD's colour-coded weather warnings for cyclone-prone areas.
- 2026Prelims Q21Statements on India's climate response: LT-LEDS, BUR-4, climate resilience.
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
Prelims practice · Statements
Ours, not from a UPSC paper
Consider the following statements:
- 1.Mission Mausam is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme implemented jointly by the Centre and the States.
- 2.Mission Mausam is implemented by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
- 3.For 2026-31, Mission Mausam is proposed to be implemented through six verticals, one of which deals with weather modification research strategy.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
True or false?
1 of 13
Statements the way Prelims prints them. Say first, then see the fact.
1.Mission Mausam is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme implemented jointly by the Centre and States.
False. It is a Central Sector umbrella scheme of the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
2.Mission Mausam is implemented by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
True. MoES runs the scheme.
3.Mission Mausam was launched by the Prime Minister in January 2025.
True. Launched on 14 January 2025.
4.The Union Cabinet approved Mission Mausam with an outlay of ₹2,000 crore for 2024-25 and 2025-26.
True. Outlay is ₹2,000 crore for the two years.
5.For 2026-31, Mission Mausam is proposed to run through four verticals.
False. Six verticals are proposed.
6.Under the 2026-31 plan, the Weather_MOD vertical deals with weather modification research strategy.
True. Weather_MOD stands for Weather MODification Research Strategy.
7.The 2026-27 Budget Estimate for the Mission is wholly under Revenue expenditure.
False. It has ₹855.29 crore under Revenue and ₹487.00 crore under Capital.
8.Mission Mausam was launched in January 2025 as a scheme of the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
True. It was launched on 14 January 2025.
9.The Mithuna global modelling system is run by NCMRWF, Noida.
True. Mithuna is an NCMRWF system; IMD runs the GFS-based one.
10.The DAMINI app, which gives lightning warnings, was developed by IITM.
True. DAMINI was developed by IITM, Pune.
11.The SACHET app, through which IMD's CAP alerts are disseminated, was developed by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
False. SACHET was developed by the NDMA.
12.Mausamgram provides forecasts at the level of the village or gram panchayat.
True. It gives hyperlocal forecasts down to village level, searchable by PIN code or by state, district, block and gram panchayat.
13.The Panchayat Mausam Seva Portal was developed by IMD in collaboration with the Ministry of Rural Development.
False. It was developed with the Ministry of Panchayati Raj. The Ministry of Rural Development's Krishi Sakhis and Pashu Sakhis help in last-mile dissemination.
Written by us from the release, not by UPSC; checked by a second model.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.