Sambalpur Gets Odisha’s Third Doppler Radar to Strengthen Weather Forecasting

Bhubaneswar/Sambalpur: Western Odisha has received a major boost to its weather monitoring and disaster preparedness infrastructure with Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi inaugurating a ‘Make in India’ Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) in Sambalpur on Wednesday.

The radar, Odisha’s third after facilities at Paradip and Gopalpur, will operate round-the-clock and monitor weather conditions within a radius of 250 km. It can track the movement of weather systems up to 450 km, providing critical inputs for early warnings and disaster management.

Inaugurating the facility at a programme held at Gangadhar Meher University, Majhi said the radar would cover 13 districts of Odisha, including Sambalpur, Bargarh, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, Deogarh, Subarnapur, Balangir, Boudh, Nuapada, Angul, Kalahandi, Keonjhar and Dhenkanal. Its coverage will also extend to adjoining areas of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.

The system will estimate rainfall at 10-minute intervals with a resolution of 150 metres. It is designed to provide advance information on thunderstorms, lightning, hailstorms and heavy rainfall, allowing authorities and communities to take precautionary measures.

The radar is also expected to support management of inflows into the Hirakud reservoir and improve preparedness in sectors vulnerable to extreme weather, including power, industry, transportation and grid operations.

Majhi said the state was moving towards a technology-driven and proactive disaster management system. The government plans to install additional Doppler weather radars in Balasore, Bhubaneswar and Puri, he said.

The Chief Minister also used the occasion to unveil a major package of development projects for Sambalpur. He inaugurated 15 completed projects worth ₹133.47 crore and laid the foundation stones for 35 projects estimated at ₹825.83 crore.

The projects cover sectors including health, rural development, sports, roads and buildings and water resources. Among them is a mega lift irrigation project estimated at ₹220.56 crore.

Majhi said development projects worth nearly ₹1,910 crore had been undertaken in Sambalpur during the current year till September. Major works include the ₹1,521-crore four-lane bypass, expansion of VIMSAR at an estimated ₹1,700 crore, the ₹100-crore Aqua Park and the ₹100-crore Samalei Phase-II project.

The state has also sanctioned ₹238.14 crore for the Ainthapali Bus Terminal, including its maintenance for 10 years. Under AMRUT 2.0, a ₹450-crore ‘Drink from Tap’ project is being implemented to supply 100 million litres of treated water every day to 41 wards of Sambalpur, the Chief Minister said.

Industrial expansion is another major component of the development push in the region. Majhi said Hindalco’s ₹40,000-crore expansion project at Lapanga and the ₹32,000-crore JSW-JFE steel project at Rengali were under implementation.

Addressing the gathering virtually, Union Minister of State for Earth Sciences Jitendra Singh said around 40 more Doppler weather radars would be added across the country in the coming days.

Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari described the Sambalpur radar as a long-standing demand of western Odisha and said the facility would strengthen the state’s efforts towards a zero-casualty approach to disasters.

Rajya Sabha MP Manmohan Samal, MLA Jay Narayan Mishra, India Meteorological Department Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Special Relief Commissioner Rajesh Prabhakar Patil and senior officials were present at the programme.