Union Minister of State (Independent Representative) for Science and Technology; Minister of State (Independent Representative) for Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh presented the National Science Awards today and appreciated India’s ‘Deep Sea’ initiatives. He also praised the scientists for carrying out the world’s first attempts to move a deep-sea mining system in the central part of the Indian Ocean at a depth of 5,270 meters. Dr. Speaking as the chief guest on the 16th foundation day of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Jitendra Singh said this is the maximum depth at which such a machine has been successfully tested anywhere in the world.
Referring to the Prime Minister’s speech from the Red Fort fortifications last year, where Modi said, “Mission Deep Ocean is the result of our ambition to explore the unlimited possibilities of the ocean, said Dr Jitendra Singh, the mineral wealth that is hidden. in the sea, the thermal energy that is in the sea water can give a new dimension to the development of the land. The minister said that research, development and exploration at Amrit Kaal for the next 25 years will be an important feature of the Indian economy as it turns 100 years old.
On this occasion, Dr. Jitendra Singh a family of professionals from MoES to support and explore a new perspective of acquiring advanced knowledge and are dedicated to make the Ministry one of the best in the world in providing weather, climate, ocean and seismology services and bring more socio-economic benefits to the country. Dr Jitendra Singh conferred eight National Awards 2022 including Lifetime Excellence Award, Lady Scientist Award, 2 Young Researcher Award and one each in Geo, Polar, Atmospheric and Ocean Sciences.
On the occasion, Dr Jitendra Singh launched the first-of-its-kind and state-of-the-art fully automated buoy-based coastal observation and water quality system for the Indian Ocean developed by the Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS). , Hyderabad. The system includes state-of-the-art sensors onboard an automated buoy integrated into the Kochi Coastal Observatory. The system will benefit a variety of stakeholders, including coastal residents, fishers, the marine industry, researchers and agencies concerned with pollution, tourism, fisheries and the coastal environment.
It will provide real-time data on 19 water quality-related measurements such as temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, etc., which will help generate accurate up-to-date information on coastal water quality, improve indicators of coastal ecosystem health, and calibrate and validate sensors on board satellites , such as Oceansat-III. INCOIS will provide this data free of charge to the public through a dedicated website. Another such observatory in Vishakhapatnam is coming up.
Dr Jitendra Singh also brought out a special issue of the popular Indian magazine Geography and You (GnY) with the theme ‘India’s Fragile Coast’. This issue highlights some of the views, research, work and vision of scientists at the National Center for Coastal Research (NCCR), Chennai towards developing and improving India’s capabilities in addressing the social, economic and environmental challenges of the country’s coastal zone.
Dr Jitendra Singh also unveiled a unique overview of monthly seismological bulletins (2011-2020) issued by the National Center for Seismology (NCS), New Delhi. The compendium provides earthquake monitoring data for more than 8,400 earthquakes in India and its neighboring regions over the past decade. NCS is among the pioneering institutions in India with its first seismological observatory at Alipore, Calcutta in 1898 and generates continuous real-time earthquake-related data through a nationwide network of seismological stations and observatories. Earthquake-related information is shared with various users, including Indian citizens and global institutions, through the latest means of communication such as social media, mobile applications and websites. The compendium released by the Union Minister would serve as a reference for students, researchers, academicians, policy makers and urban planners who are particularly interested in expanding the understanding of earthquakes and disaster mitigation.
All meteorological observatories in India
Another important publication published by Dr Jitendra Singh titled “Climatology Tables of Observatories in India 1991-2020” would benefit various stakeholders from fields like climatology, agriculture, geography, hydrology, biology, economics, ecology and environment. The publication provides average values ​​of climate elements such as temperature, precipitation, relative humidity, wind, cloud cover, visibility, extreme values ​​of temperature and precipitation, and frequency of occurrence of weather phenomena from all meteorological observatories in India. Prepared by the National Data Centre, Office of Climate Research and Services, Pune, India Meteorological Department (IMD), this document would be updated every ten years for public utility and benefit.
Dr. Presenting the future plan for the ministry, Jitendra Singh informed that in the next two years, the MoES has ambitious plans to develop a manned submersible vessel that would transport 3 scientists to a depth of 6000 meters in the ocean using sets of scientific sensors and instruments; development of the Integrated Mining System for the mining of polymetallic nodes from a depth of 6000 m; Increase the number of Doppler weather radars from the current number of 34 to approximately 50; Integrated Meteorological Services for the Northeast Region; Expand the existing high-performance computing system from 10 PFlops to about 27 PFlops and improve the horizontal resolution of the weather forecast model from the existing 12 km to 6 km to help farmers obtain block-level forecasts.
Referring to the 75-day Coastal Cleanup Campaign launched by the Ministry on July 5, 2022, which will culminate in the “International Coastal Cleanup Day” on September 17, 2022, Dr. Jitendra Singh Ministry officials to mobilize beach saviors. companies, NGOs, Child and Youth Forums, Corporations and PRI Institutions to create awareness about ‘Swachh Sagar, Surakshit Sagar’ in the remaining 50 odd days.
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