India Grants Public Access to Cyclone Warning System: Government

The government of India on Thursday announced the expansion of an SMS based Cyclone Alert/Warning System to provide the large public the cyclone alerts and warnings.

MOSCOW, December 25 (Sputnik) — The government of India on Thursday announced the expansion of an SMS-based system to provide the public with cyclone alerts and warnings, a press release said.

To avail themselves of the SMS based Cyclone Alert/Warning System, people in India will have to register with the Indian Meteorological Department's official website.

The department noted that previously alerts could only be sent to disaster managers, fishermen and farmers, which had "resulted in significant reduction in loss of life and property."

But as of today, the cyclone-warning system will be available to the public at large.

"The SMS-based weather alert system is a component of the 'Digital India Programme' which is a flagship programme of the government with a vision to transform our country into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy," Harsh Vardhan, India's Union Minister of Earth Science was quoted on Thursday as saying by The Times of India.

The release also noted that in developing weather forecast and warning services the Indian Meteorological Department has used the latest equipment and technology.