Cloud seeding could not be taken up in Chitradurga district on Sunday. Instead, cloud seeding was taken up in Dharwad, Shiggaon and Haveri, according to the staff engaged in this process.
Project coordinator Srinivas said that after take-off, the staff did not find clouds suitable for cloud seeding in the Chitradurga region and returned. However, suitable clouds were found in the southern parts of Dharwad, Shiggaon and Haveri region and cloud seeding was taken up in those areas, he added.
Officials of the Department of Information and Public Relations said that cloud seeding was successfully taken up in Haveri and Shiggaon as the region received good rainfall.
ADVERTISEMENT
Flag off
Earlier, Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj H.K. Patil flagged off the aircraft assigned for the purpose here on Sunday.
After it was flagged off, the aircraft flew in the direction of Chitradurga where clouds that could be seeded had been identified. People in this region had high hopes from this new exercise by the State government to mitigate the drought condition. This region has been witnessing drought for the last four years due to scanty rainfall.
ADVERTISEMENT
Speaking to presspersons, Mr. Patil said that the radar installed in Gadag had identified seedable clouds in the southern and eastern parts of Chitradurga district. The radar in Gadag has a radius of 220 km, he added.
60-day contract
About cloud seeding taken up so far in the State, Mr. Patil said that the State government has entered into a 60-day contract for taking up cloud seeding. Cloud seeding taken up in the southern districts had fetched fairly good results.
Cloud seeding was taken up on Saturday in Kolar, Chikkaballapur and Tumakuru districts and the region received rainfall 20 % more than average for the period. The government chose to take up cloud seeding at this point of time considering the requirement of water for the rabi crop, he said and expressed the hopes that cloud seeding in north Karnataka region will yield the expected results. Taking a dig at those criticising the move on cloud seeding, Mr. Patil said that the decision was taken after examining the issue from all angles and holding consultations with experts. Cloud seeding is a process based on scientific theory. Moreover, nearly 50 countries in the world are regularly taking up cloud seeding. Karnataka too had taken up cloud seeding in 2003 successfully. Those levelling allegations against such efforts may be lacking scientific temper, he said.