The Delhi government is planning to conduct the first trial of artificial rain today, Tuesday, provided the weather conditions are favourable. The initiative, led by IIT Kanpur, is part of the capital's comprehensive strategy to combat severe air pollution during the winter months.

An initial attempt to conduct the trial on Monday was unsuccessful after the IIT Kanpur aircraft and team could not reach Delhi due to rain and poor visibility in Kanpur.

Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa stated that the Army aircraft is expected to reach Delhi from Kanpur today. "If the weather is favourable, then we can conduct the trial of artificial rain. Everything depends on the weather," he said. A review meeting is also scheduled for Tuesday to assess the feasibility of proceeding with the test.

IIT Kanpur is spearheading the cloud seeding project. Officials confirmed that preparations for the much-awaited trial are now complete. Last week, a successful trial flight was conducted over the Burari area.

During the test flight, the aircraft dispersed small amounts of silver iodide and sodium chloride, the compounds used for cloud seeding. Officials noted that while the preparations are in place, atmospheric humidity during the initial test was less than 20 per cent, significantly lower than the necessary 50 per cent usually required for effective cloud seeding.

Chief Minister Rekha Gupta had previously indicated that the Meteorological Department forecast a window of suitable cloud formation between October 28 and 30. In a social media post last week, the Chief Minister had expressed hope that if conditions remained favourable, Delhi could witness its first artificial rain on October 29.

The artificial rain exercise has been delayed several times over the past year due to adverse weather and monsoon conditions, with postponements occurring in late May, early June, August, September, and the second week of October. The current attempt marks a critical step in the city's fight against deteriorating air quality.