The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Cloud-seeding fails to take off after launch

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jul 22, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Cloud-seeding fails to take off after launch

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, JULY 21. `Indira Meghamadanam,' the 105-day odyssey to seed clouds and make them heavy enough to shower the State with rain got off to a start with the Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy flagging off the aircraft loaded with silver iodide and sodium chloride.

But as no suitable clouds were found in the proposed operational area, Rangareddy, Nalgonda and Mahbubnagar districts, the Cessna 340 aircraft did not take off.

Instead, Dr. Reddy and his cabinet colleagues, N. Raghuveera Reddy (Agriculture) and M. Mareppa (Lift Irrigation and Rain Shadow Areas), were treated to the sight of a flare being lit from the port wing of the plane and spewing out thick fumes generated by the silver iodide-sodium chloride combination.

The expression of hope on the Chief Minister's face mingled with a look of fascination as the flare ignited by the pilots Vadim Kulikor, a former Russian MIG pilot and Canadian Alan Stewart, burnt itself out after roughly five minutes.

He told presspersons that it was an experiment conducted with all the sincerity that the Government could muster for bringing rain and relief to farmers.

Dr. Reddy said that cloud seeding was a regular, annual feature in China and the United States of America. In the former nation, about 70 aircraft were used in the operations, while in the latter country, the expenses were borne by insurance companies, he said, adding that in Andhra Pradesh too, they would become a regular programme.

In Karnataka out of 90 days of cloud seeding, it rained on 59 days, he said. "After all, considering that we have a budget of Rs. 52,000 crores, what is Rs. 10 or Rs. 15 crores," he asked.

Officials present during the launch of the programme included M.G. Gopal, Secretary, Rain Shadow Areas and K. Ramakrishna, Airport Director.

Also present were Jim Kepford of Weather Modification Inc., the company that provided the cloud seeding technology that was brought by Agni Aviation, represented by Arvind Sharma.

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