The much-hyped cloud seeding experiment to induce artificial rain over Delhi on Tuesday has failed to yield any results, leaving the city’s toxic haze as thick as ever. Despite the high hopes pinned on this ambitious project, experts say the trial was doomed from the start thanks to Delhi’s dry winter atmosphere and critically low moisture levels.
For many residents, the anticipation felt cinematic reminiscent of the iconic final rain scene in Lagaan, symbolising long-awaited relief after a period of suffering. But as the aircraft from IIT Kanpur sprayed chemicals into the sky, not a single drop of rain followed.
Over the years, successive Delhi governments have repeatedly turned to the idea of cloud seeding as a desperate fix for the city’s worsening air pollution, especially during winter, when stagnant winds and low temperatures trap pollutants close to the ground. While artificial rain can temporarily wash pollutants out of the air, it does little to address the root cause emissions and crop-burning that blanket the capital in toxic smog every year.
The Failed Attempt Over Delhi’s Skies
The experiment, conducted under the BJP-led Delhi government in collaboration with IIT Kanpur, was part of a ₹3.21 crore project involving five cloud-seeding trials between October and December. On Tuesday, an aircraft flew from Kanpur to Delhi and dispersed a mixture of silver iodide over areas like Burari, Mayur Vihar, and Karol Bagh. The plane repeated the exercise three hours later, but the skies remained dry.
Silver iodide, which has a crystal structure similar to ice, acts as a “seed” for water droplets to form around. Once these droplets cluster and become heavy enough, they fall as rain. But this process requires one crucial ingredient sufficient moisture. Without it, the seeded particles drift uselessly through the clouds.
As it turned out, Delhi’s weather conditions were simply not suitable for such an experiment. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had predicted only very light rain or drizzle for the day, with the clouds above the city carrying less than 20% moisture. For cloud seeding to succeed, at least 50–60% humidity is required.
“The moisture content remained low at around 10–15%, which is not an ideal condition for cloud seeding,” said a report by IIT Kanpur.
Experts: ‘Bound To Fail’
Meteorologists had warned that the trial was unlikely to work given the dry atmospheric conditions that prevail over Delhi in late October. Dr. Akshay Deoras, a research scientist at the University of Reading in the UK, told India Today TV that “just because there are clouds doesn’t mean they are suitable. In winter, cloud seeding should ideally be done during western disturbances when rain-bearing clouds actually form.”
Whether these warnings were adequately considered before the ₹3 crore exercise remains unclear. The Delhi government went ahead with the experiment, tempted by IMD’s faint prediction of drizzle a forecast that did not materialize.
Experts say such experiments are not new to India. Mumbai attempted cloud seeding back in 2009, with little success, and another proposal in 2023 never materialized. Despite the technical sophistication, the method’s success rate remains uncertain even in favourable conditions.
A Costly Miss
Each cloud-seeding operation costs approximately ₹1 lakh per square kilometre a steep price for an experiment with unpredictable outcomes. As one expert noted, “Cloud seeding can only help if there’s something to seed. Without enough moisture, you’re just scattering chemicals into dry air.”
For now, the Delhi skies remain shrouded in the same grey haze that has come to define winter in the capital. And while the city’s residents continue to breathe some of the most polluted air in the world, the failed rain experiment serves as yet another reminder that the solutions to Delhi’s air crisis must come from the ground not the clouds.
