Jammu, Jan 15 (PTI) Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Union minister Jitendra Singh on Sunday virtually inaugurated X-Band Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) at Banihal Top along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway.

The DWR with a range of 100 kilometres is the third such facility installed in Jammu and Kashmir by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to provide better and improved weather services for timely forecasts, warnings and various weather data, an official spokesman said.

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Congratulating the IMD and the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences, Sinha said the new system would help in the detection of severe weather events and ensure safe conduct of various pilgrimages, especially the annual Amarnath Yatra.

The event, which marked the 148th foundation day celebrations of the IMD, was attended virtually by Uttrakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh. On the occasion, DWR systems for Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh were also inaugurated, the spokesman said.

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“The IMD is playing a significant role in protecting life and livelihood of the people from adverse weather and is registering remarkable progress in making J-K disaster-proof.

“The system will go a long way in augmenting and helping the agriculture and allied sectors and tourism which are the mainstay of the economy of Jammu and Kashmir,” the Lt Governor said.

He said the Union Territory receives heavy snowfall in winters and heavy rain in summers, which makes it vulnerable to various kinds of natural disasters.

The IMD had earlier installed two DWRs, one each in Jammu and Srinagar, Keeping in view the vulnerability due to various kinds of extreme weather, especially in a changing climate scenario, and to provide better and improved weather services for timely forecasts.

“The recent one installed at Banihal Top will facilitate tourists and tourism industry, safe navigation of aircraft and help to detect severe weather events, especially thunderstorms, heavy showers, hailstorms, heavy snowfall and avalanches,” Sinha said.

He expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the socio-economic development of J-K and the safety and welfare of its people.

The Ministry of Earth Sciences and the scientists are doing remarkable work to enhance synergy between technology and common people, he said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)