Introduction
India's space programme, spearheaded by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), serves as a strategic force multiplier for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. By leveraging Earth observation constellations, meteorological sensors, telecommunications, and regional navigation systems, space technology bridges critical gaps in early warning, hazard mitigation, and long-term climate resilience.
Contribution to Disaster Management
Satellite technology plays a vital role across all phases of the disaster management cycle, from preparedness and early warning to response and recovery.
- Early Warning and Tracking: Dedicated meteorological satellites such as INSAT-3DR and INSAT-3DS provide rapid-scan imaging for accurate cyclone tracking, atmospheric profiling, and storm surge predictions, helping agencies like the India Meteorological Department drastically minimize casualties.
- All-Weather Hazard Mapping: Radar imaging satellites like RISAT use synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to penetrate thick cloud cover during monsoon seasons, providing near-real-time flood inundation extents and flood-hazard zonation.
- Geological Hazard Monitoring: The National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) developed the Landslide Atlas of India using high-resolution terrain data to identify high-risk hill slopes across the Himalayas and Western Ghats.
- Decision Support and Emergency Response: Platforms such as the National Database for Emergency Management (NDEM) and the Bhuvan geoportal deliver spatial layers and situational awareness to emergency operations centers.
- Last-Mile Offshore Alerting: The Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) system broadcasts satellite-based emergency alerts and weather warnings directly to deep-sea fishers beyond terrestrial mobile network ranges.
Enabling Climate-Resilient Development
Space-based assets provide empirical, long-term environmental intelligence essential for sustainable resource management and adaptive planning.
- Climate-Smart Agriculture: Sensors on Resourcesat and joint initiatives like NISAR supply soil moisture, surface water dynamics, and vegetative health data, powering forecasting schemes such as FASAL (Forecasting Agricultural output using Space, Agro-meteorology and Land-based observations) and NADAMS (National Agricultural Drought Assessment and Monitoring System).
- Water Resource and Cryosphere Monitoring: Satellite remote sensing tracks seasonal changes in Himalayan glacial lakes to mitigate Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) and assists the National Aquifer Mapping Programme (NAQUIM) in delineating recharge zones and groundwater depletion.
- Resilient Urban and Spatial Infrastructure: Geospatial integration through Bhuvan enables risk-informed master planning, urban drainage mapping, and land-use zoning under programmes like AMRUT 2.0.
Conclusion
Harnessing space capabilities is essential for fulfilling India's commitments under the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and the Paris Climate Agreement. Facilitating public-private collaborations through IN-SPACe to develop high-revisit small satellite constellations will further deliver hyper-local, real-time climate intelligence for community resilience.