Government Launches 'Bharat Forecast System' — World's First Weather Model with 6 Km Resolution.
National
On May 26, 2025, Union Minister Jitendra Singh of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) launched the ‘Bharat Forecast System (BFS)’, the world’s first high-resolution Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) model with a 6-kilometre spatial resolution, at an event held at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, Delhi.
- The BFS was developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune, Maharashtra, in collaboration with MoES, and has been handed over to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), headquartered in New Delhi.
- The event was also graced by Dr. M. Ravichandran, Secretary, MoES, and Dr. M. Mohapatra, Director General (DG) of Meteorology, IMD.
- The Bharat Forecast System (BFS) has been under experimental testing since 2022, significantly improving the accuracy of weather forecasts by up to 64%. Previously, a single forecast covered an area of about four villages within a 12 km radius, but with BFS, it is now possible to generate separate, highly localized forecasts for each individual village.
Main Point :- (i) Powered by the supercomputer ‘Arka’ (11.77 petaflops, 33 PB storage), BFS cuts model run time to 3-4 hours from 12-13 hours by ‘Pratyush’. With 6 km resolution in tropics and 7-8 km near poles, it enables accurate forecasts of localized storms, heavy rain, and cyclones.
(ii) The BFS model uses data from a network of 40 Doppler Weather Radars (DWRs) spread across the country, which empowers the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to issue more accurate localized forecasts and nowcasts. Designed to operate across the tropical zone between 30° South and 30° North, BFS effectively covers the entire Indian subcontinent, spanning latitudes from 8.4°N to 37.6°N.
(iii) By providing timely and precise weather information, BFS is expected to greatly benefit key sectors including agriculture, disaster management, aviation, and public safety, enabling better preparedness and response to weather-related events.
About the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES)
Union Minister: Dr. Jitendra Singh
Headquarters: New Delhi
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