Ministry of Earth Sciences Celebrates 20th Foundation Day

📌 Summary:

• The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) marked its 20th Foundation Day at Prithvi Bhawan, New Delhi, celebrating two decades in earth-systems science, weather forecasting, oceanography and polar research
• Secretary Dr. N. Kalaiselvi described MoES as a full value chain: data provider (Prithvi systems), service provider (Mission Mausam) and technology provider (Deep Ocean Mission); she highlighted synergy with the 150+ year-old India Meteorological Department (IMD)
• Genesis traced to July 1981 with the Department of Ocean Development under the PM's direct purview; India's maiden Antarctic expedition (1981) led to research stations Dakshin Gangotri, Maitri and Bharati, and institutions NIOT, NCAOR (now NCPOR) and INCOIS, plus OTEC and desalination work for the blue economy
• Key launches/releases: establishment of 13 IMD Centres of Excellence (e.g., Desert Meteorology–Jaipur, Mountain Meteorology–Dehradun, Thunderstorm Research–Patna, Agro-meteorology–Bengaluru)
• Upgradation of the Cyclone Warning Centre (CWC) Thiruvananthapuram to an Area Cyclone Warning Centre (ACWC) covering Kerala, Karnataka and Lakshadweep
• IMD–ICAR-NIVEDI MoU to establish Weather-Driven Animal Disease forecasting

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS3 — science & technology achievements, disaster early-warning systems, blue economy and indigenous scientific capacity

📝 Prelims Facts:

• MoES core arms: Prithvi systems (data), Mission Mausam (services), Deep Ocean Mission (technology); IMD is 150+ years old
• Antarctic stations: Dakshin Gangotri, Maitri, Bharati; institutions NIOT, NCPOR, INCOIS
• CWC Thiruvananthapuram upgraded to ACWC (Kerala, Karnataka, Lakshadweep)

🔑 Key Term: Mission Mausam — MoES initiative to make India 'weather-ready and climate-smart' through advanced observation and forecasting.