The Delhi government has decided to bear the entire cost of artificial rain for combating hazardous air pollution in the city and directed the chief secretary to present the government’s views before the Supreme Court on Friday, officials said.

If the Centre supports the decision, the Delhi government can arrange for first artificial rain in the city by November 20, they said on Thursday.

“In a significant development, the Delhi government has decided to bear the cost of artificial rain that could be made to happen by November 20 if the Centre extends its support to the Delhi government,” said a senior government functionary.

The Kejriwal government has plans to induce artificial rain through cloud seeding to combat air pollution in Delhi, Environment Minister Gopal Rai said on Wednesday.

Mr Rai held a meeting with scientists from IIT-Kanpur who explained that cloud seeding can only be attempted when there are clouds or moisture in the atmosphere.

“Experts anticipate that such conditions could develop around November 20-21. We have asked the scientists to prepare a proposal by Thursday that will be submitted to the Supreme Court,” the minister told reporters.

Mr Rai emphasised that obtaining the necessary clearances and permissions for using this technology from both the central and the state governments is a time-sensitive matter.

India Meteorological Department Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra told PTI that inducing artificial rain can only be attempted when there are clouds or moisture available.

Artificial rain through cloud seeding involves dispersing substances into the air to encourage condensation, resulting in precipitation. The most common substances used for cloud seeding include silver iodide, potassium iodide and dry ice (solid carbon dioxide). These agents provide the nuclei around which water vapour can condense, ultimately leading to the formation of rain or snow.

This weather modification technique has been utilised in various parts of the world, primarily in regions experiencing water scarcity or drought conditions.

However, the effectiveness and environmental impact of cloud seeding remain subjects of ongoing research and discussion.

Data from carrion-eating birds is helping Israel’s army locate corpses around sites of the October 7 attack by Hamas operatives, said a wildlife expert involved in the project. Eagles, vultures and other birds of prey fitted with tracking devices have played a role in the search for human remains, said Ohad Hatzofe of Israel’s Nature and Parks Authority.

“When the war began I was approached by some reservists serving in that unit,” said Hatzofe. “They asked me if my birds could help with something.”

The idea came from EITAN, a unit within the army’s human resources branch which is responsible for locating missing soldiers.

Hatzofe heads a programme that tracks endangered griffon vultures, which chiefly feed on dead animals, as well as eagles and other birds of prey which he said also eat carrion.

The programme has tagged hundreds of birds with GPS trackers to study their migratory patterns, feeding habits and environmental threats they face.

On October 23, one of them — a rare sea eagle which had returned to Israeli skies the day before after spending the summer in northern Russia — was found near Beeri, just outside the Gaza Strip.

“I sent my data” to the army, Hatzofe said.

“They went to verify it and recovered four bodies,” he said, unable to reveal more about the location or identities of the corpses.

Beeri, a kibbutz agricultural community, saw 85 residents killed when Hamas operatives rushed across the highly-militarised border to carry out the worst attack since Israel’s creation in 1948.

According to Israeli authorities more than 1,400 people, mostly civilians, were killed in the attack.

Vowing to destroy Hamas, Israel retaliated with a relentless bombardment and ground invasion that the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says has killed more than 10,500 people, also mostly civilians.

In Beeri, another 30 are missing or presumed to be among the roughly 240 hostages seized by Hamas during its attack.

Hatzofe said data from a second bird, a Bonelli’s eagle, enabled the recovery of “other bodies inside Israel”.

Israeli police on Monday said they had identified the bodies of 843 civilians and 351 soldiers in total.

More than one month after the Hamas attack, dozens of others listed as missing have not been found or identified.

Preneet Kaur, suspended Congress MP and the wife of former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, voted in favour of the Ethics Committee recommendations on Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, showing support for her expulsion from parliament. Her aid proved decisive at the meeting of the Committee, who took a vote today on the recommendations and it was adopted with a 6-4 majority.

A total of 10 members, including the chairman of the committee had attended the meeting held this evening. The BJP numbers were down from 7 to 4 today as three of its members were unable to attend.

One MP was missing from the Opposition side too. Uttam Reddy, one of the five MPs who staged a walkout supporting Mahua on November 2, is filing his nomination for the Telangana Assembly elections.

A YSR Congress nominee — whose vote the NDA could have counted on — also did not attend the meeting.

Under the circumstances, Ms Kaur’s vote became pivotal – one more vote in favour of Ms Moitra would have led to a deadlock.

Ms Kaur’s husband, veteran Congressman and Gandhi family loyalist Amarinder Singh, had quit the Congress in 2021 after he was forced to step down from the top post in Punjab. He then formed his own party — the Punjab Lok Congress (PLC) –and later joined the BJP.

In February, Congress suspended Preneet Kaur, accusing her of “indulging in anti-party activities to help BJP”. There was a call for her expulsion from Amrinder Singh Raja Warring — the new state party chief — last year after the four-time MP participated in a roadshow led by Union minister Rajnath Singh, who was campaigning for her husband during last year’s state election.

BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, who is powering the moves against Ms Moitra, welcomed Preneet Kaur’s decision. “Punjab has always stood for India’s identity and national security, today again Captain Amarinder Singh ji and Congress Party MP Preneet Kaur ji did not make any compromise for national security. India was, is and will always be grateful to the brave men of Punjab,” he posted on X, formerly Twitter.

In its report, the Committee said Mahua Moitra shared user ID with “unauthorised persons”, took cash and amenities from businessman Darshan Hiranandani and it was “serious misdemeanour” which calls for “serious punishment”.  

Besides her expulsion from parliament, the panel recommended that a “legal, intensive, institutional and time-bound investigation” be held into the matter.

Mr Dubey said that anti-corruption body Lokpal has ordered a CBI probe into the corruption allegations against Ms Moitra. The MP accused her of asking questions in Lok Sabha to target the Adani Group at the behest of businessman Darshan Hiranandani in exchange for gifts. He also said Ms Moitra had shared her login wih Mr Hiranandani, which has been accepted by both parties.

Ms Moitra has admitted to sharing her parliamentary login, but claimed there is no regulation governing this. Ahead of her hearing with the Ethics Committee, she had questioned why these rules “are not shared with MPs”.