The steel city’s second Automatic Weather Station (AWS) was inaugurated on the campus of the National Institute of Technology-Rourkela. The foundation stone for a meteorological observatory was also laid by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) Director General of Meteorology Mrutyunjay Mohapatra. An MoU was also signed with NIT-R for academic and research collaboration on the day.

The observatory will provide current meteorological information and help forecast weather. Likewise, AWS will transmit and record observations obtained from measuring instruments.

In his inaugural address at the conference as chief guest, Mohapatra said the IMD has set up another AWS at Rourkela Airport.