Land shortage cripples Agriculture Ministry’s weather network rollout

WINDS, or the Weather Information Network and Data System, is a Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare programme. It is executed through the Mahalanobis National Crop Forecast Centre. Its purpose is to provide hyper-local weather data, mainly for calculating insurance estimates and payouts under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana.

The planned network includes 1,197 automatic weather stations and 49,313 automatic rain gauges. An automatic rain gauge measures rainfall, while about 10% of gram-panchayat-level gauges also measure temperature. An automatic weather station measures rainfall, air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and wind direction.

These sensors send data to government data centres. The information is used to prepare hourly, daily, and fortnightly forecasts. However, installation has been slow because many proposed sites were rejected, clearances remain pending, and suitable land is difficult to find.

The WINDS plan covered 1,197 automatic weather stations and 49,313 automatic rain gauges. Together, these amounted to about 50,500 sensors across participating States. The network was intended to supply detailed local weather information for forecasts and crop-insurance calculations.

By the September 9 status update, only 113 automatic weather stations had been delivered. That represented 9.4% of their target. Just 1,730 automatic rain gauges had been installed, equal to 4% of the planned total. The three companies involved were Skymet Weather Services, Ingen Technologies Private Limited, and Azista Industries.

The resulting shortfall was about 48,700 sensors, or roughly 96% of the target. The project was also at least a year behind schedule. Documents indicate that site selection, rather than equipment supply, was the main obstacle, with many locations rejected or awaiting approvals.

Most delays came from choosing and approving locations, not from manufacturing or delivering the sensors. The stations need suitable placement, and implementing companies reported a shortage of available land. States also had to verify proposed sites and provide clearances before installation could proceed.

The scale of rejection was especially large in Uttar Pradesh. Of 27,644 proposed sites, 16,478 were rejected. In Odisha, 5,666 of 7,720 sites were rejected. Kerala rejected 524 of 946 sites. Documents also identified duplicate sites approved at both panchayat and block levels, locations awaiting clearances, and sites that States had not yet shared with implementation partners.

These problems leave companies unable to install equipment even when hardware is available. Repeated checking and replacement of sites slows the network further. Unless States identify acceptable locations and complete approvals, installation will remain far below the targets needed for broad local weather coverage.

The disagreement concerns both land availability and changing installation rules. An implementing company representative said the September 1, 2023 manual allowed automatic rain gauges on single-storey rooftops when ground sites were unsuitable or flood-prone. Companies say the Agriculture Department later changed that position retrospectively.

On December 3, 2025, after six States had issued tenders or work orders, the manual was amended on the IMD’s advice. It limited rooftop rain gauges to 10% to 15% of the total and required States to justify each rooftop installation. The earlier manual had set no numerical rooftop cap.

IMD officials defend the ground requirement as essential for accurate measurements. S. Hosalikar said the principle follows World Meteorological Organisation guidance and that height significantly affects weather data. The conflict has therefore become practical as well as technical: companies need flexibility where land is scarce, while the IMD prioritises consistent sensor placement.

WINDS is mainly intended to support crop-insurance estimates and payouts under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana. Its sensors are meant to provide hyper-local weather information rather than relying only on broader regional readings. A delayed network therefore leaves the programme without much of the planned local data.

The gap is substantial. By September 9, only 113 of 1,197 automatic weather stations and 1,730 of 49,313 automatic rain gauges had been delivered. The article does not quantify how individual insurance claims would change, but it links WINDS directly to insurance calculations. The shortage could limit the weather observations available for those estimates.

Until more sites are approved and sensors installed, data coverage will remain uneven across States. That may make the intended hourly, daily, and fortnightly information less complete. The article does not state a specific revised payout timeline or formula, so the precise effect on farmers’ claims cannot be determined from the available facts.

When suitable ground space cannot be found, the earlier WINDS manual provided a rooftop option. It allowed an automatic rain gauge on a single-storey building if normal siting requirements could not be met or the area was flood-prone. This was intended to keep installation possible in difficult locations.

The rooftop unit must have a stable foundation and a tamper-proof setup. The 2023 manual did not set a numerical limit on rooftop installations. However, the December 3, 2025 amendment restricted rooftop gauges to 10% to 15% of the total and required States to issue a justification note explaining why suitable ground space was unavailable.

The article does not identify another specific alternative, such as a different type of site or structure. Therefore, the stated fallback is a carefully installed rooftop gauge, subject to the newer cap and justification requirement. Ground placement remains the preferred arrangement under the IMD’s position.

Rainfall measurements are useful only when sensors are placed in a consistent way. The WINDS manual therefore says automatic rain gauges should stand on level ground covered with short grass or natural earth, ideally in a 4-by-3-metre area. Such placement provides a standard setting for collecting and comparing observations.

A rooftop places the instrument higher and in a different exposure. As S. Hosalikar explained, height significantly affects weather data. Wind conditions and the path of falling rain can differ around a building, so a rooftop reading may not represent the same conditions as a ground-level reading. The article does not give a numerical correction for this effect.

The IMD says ground placement follows World Meteorological Organisation requirements and should be the norm. Rooftops are allowed only in exceptional cases, such as unsuitable ground or flood-prone areas. Consistent placement helps make readings more comparable across locations and more useful for forecasts and insurance calculations.