State-of-the-art weather surveillance radar funded by Japan was inaugurated in Karachi on Wednesday, March 9, according to a statement issued by the Embassy of Japan in Pakistan.
The radar will cover the southern part of the country in a radius of 450 kilometers and will help assess the probability of rains around the clock with more accuracy, resulting in an improved weather forecast.
“I hope that the project enables Pakistan to forecast weather more accurately and contribute to the disaster resilience in Pakistan,” said Mr. FURUTA Shigeki, Chief Representative of Japan International Cooperation Agency( JICA) Pakistan Office during the inauguration ceremony of Japanese funded, “the Project for Installation of Weather Surveillance Radar at Karachi”.
The ceremony was attended by various high ranking officials from both the countries, including the Consul General, Japan Consulate office Karachi, Mr. ISOMURA Toshikazu, Chief Representative of JICA Pakistan Office, Mr. FURUTA Shigeki, Director General, Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), Mr. Sahibzad Khan and Federal Minister for Aviation, Ghulam Sarwar Khan.
About the Project:
In this project, a new Weather Surveillance Radar, of worth approximately JPY 1.95 billion (approx. USD 17.71 Million), was installed in Karachi with the Japanese grant assistance. The radar has been operational since April last year.
“30 years ago, Japan supported the previous Karachi radar project with enthusiasm and I am excited to build on our effort to assist the disaster risk management in Pakistan,” said Mr. ISOMURA Toshikazu, Consul General of Japan in Karachi.
Till now, Japan has supported the installation of four radars in Pakistan in the cities of Islamabad, Karachi, Multan (to be installed), and Sukkur (to be installed) which will cover more than 80% of the areas of Pakistan.
Significance of this Radar System:
According to the official statement, the radar system will assist the MET department of Pakistan in the following areas:
- For short-term weather forecasts
- Monitoring of thunderstorms and other atmospheric phenomena in the four provinces
- In assessing the probability of precipitation around the clock
- Will allow a more accurate weather forecast
- In deliverance of early warning in a timely manner