Maharashtra becomes first state to integrate indigenous Bharat Forecast System into disaster preparedness framework

MUMBAI: Maharashtra has become the first state in the country to integrate the Bharat Forecast System (BharatFS), an indigenous advanced weather forecasting model, marking a major shift towards enhancing situational awareness through geospatial decision-making.

As part of the initiative, the Maharashtra State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Pune-based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) to strengthen the State’s ability to prepare for and respond to extreme weather-related disasters.

The partnership will bring advanced weather forecasts directly into the government’s decision-making systems. For the first time, BharatFS—an indigenous forecasting tool developed by the Government of India under the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) Mission Mausam—is being integrated into the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) through its Geospatial Decision Support System (GeoDSS) for effective disaster management.

The biggest advantage of the collaboration is access to high-resolution weather data and timely forecast information to enable anticipatory action. BharatFS can generate forecasts for areas as small as 6 km x 6 km, allowing weather predictions at the gram panchayat and sub-taluka levels. This marks a significant improvement over the earlier district-level and 12 km x 12 km forecasts, helping local administrations take timely and targeted preparedness measures.

The integration is expected to significantly strengthen preparedness efforts during the ongoing heatwave and the upcoming monsoon season.

“This partnership marks an important step towards strengthening disaster preparedness systems in Maharashtra. The integration of BharatFS into the State’s disaster management framework will help improve timely early warnings, local-level preparedness and coordinated response during extreme weather events, especially during the ongoing heatwave and the upcoming monsoon season,” Disaster Management Minister Girish Mahajan said.

“The integration of BharatFS with Maharashtra’s GeoDSS platform will strengthen real-time situational awareness and support faster, more informed decision-making at the State and district levels. This initiative will further enhance preparedness, coordination and last-mile dissemination of weather-related early warnings,” said Principal Secretary Vinita Vaid Singal, who heads the Disaster Management, Relief and Rehabilitation Department.

“This collaboration places scientific weather knowledge directly in the hands of district and local administrators, and we aim to make these services accessible to citizens across the State. It is a practical and powerful step towards keeping communities safe,” noted SDMA Director Bhalchandra P Chavan.

Key benefits of the initiative include 3-hourly high-resolution weather forecasts for timely and targeted early warnings, integration with risk analytics for impact-based forecasting (IBF), automation of trigger-based alerts and workflows for hydro-meteorological hazards, and integration with the CAP-Sachet platform for simultaneous dissemination of alerts through sirens, mobile messages and public broadcasts.

The system is also expected to improve prediction of extreme weather events such as floods, thunderstorms and landslides, while strengthening last-mile delivery of warnings to vulnerable families and individuals.