Indian Youth Congress files complaint alleging ‘rain theft’ after Delhi's cloud-seeding trial; BJP reacts ‘jealous’

The Congress youth wing filed a police complaint in Delhi on Wednesday, alleging “theft of rain” and claiming that the Delhi government’s ₹1.25-crore cloud-seeding experiment had failed to bring showers to the city.

Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa, however, insisted that the cloud-seeding trials were successful and accused the opposition of being “jealous” of the BJP-led government's achievement.

The national capital conducted cloud-seeding operations on Tuesday for the first time in 53 years to induce artificial rain amid worsening pollution levels, though the weather department reported no measurable rainfall.

The Delhi government, in collaboration with IIT-Kanpur, conducted the trials in parts of Delhi, including Burari, North Karol Bagh, Mayur Vihar, and Badli. The government's report stated that two precipitation events were recorded -- Noida at 4 pm (0.1mm of rain) and Greater Noida at 4 pm (0.2 mm).

Here's what Indian Youth Congress said

According to an official statement of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC), its Delhi unit president, Akshay Lakra, submitted a complaint at the Parliament Street Police Station, demanding an FIR and investigation into what he described as “rain theft” following the cloud-seeding trial.

“Planes took off from Kanpur to Delhi in the name of cloud seeding, and the BJP government put out big advertisements promising rain within 15 to 20 minutes to provide relief from pollution. However, no such rain was seen anywhere in Delhi, so we have come to file a complaint against this rain theft,” Lakra said.

The complaint calls for an inquiry into whether "unknown persons intercepted or diverted" rain, and seeks accountability for the public funds spent on the operation.

It also urges the police to coordinate with the meteorological department and IIT-Kanpur to trace the cause of the "missing rainfall".

Officials involved in the cloud-seeding project, however, maintained that the process was carried out as per scientific protocol and the results depend on atmospheric conditions, which cannot always guarantee immediate rainfall.

They said the operation was aimed at testing the feasibility and gathering data for future interventions.

Lakra urged Chief Minister Rekha Gupta to "refrain from misleading residents" and focus on effective measures to curb pollution. "The people of Delhi deserve answers and at least a few drops of the rain they were promised," he said.

The Delhi Government completed two consecutive cloud seeding operations as part of its robust air quality management strategy.

Cloud seeding is an advanced weather modification science, intended to trigger or enhance rainfall from suitable clouds by introducing selected particles--such as silver iodide or sodium chloride--using aircraft or other means.

(With inputs from ANI)