IMD DG Mrutyunjay Mohapatra elected 3rd VP of World Meteorological Organisation

India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra was on Thursday elected as one of the three vice-presidents of the World Meteorological Organisation, the UN agency for monitoring climate change, early warnings, and disaster preparedness.

At the WMO elections held in Geneva on Thursday, Abdulla Al Mandous, Director of United Arab Emirates National Center of Meteorology, was elected President of WMO for a four-year term.

Also read: Argentine meteorologist becomes first female head of UN weather agency

Daouda Konate, director of meteorology of Cote d'Ivoire and Eoin Moran, Director Met Éireann, the Irish Meteorological Service were elected the first and second vice presidents.

Earlier this week, Earth Sciences Secretary M Ravichandran was elected as the Vice Chair of the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Mechanism (ATCM).

The WMO has a President and three vice-presidents who preside over World Meteorological Congress and the Executive Council. The Secretariat, headquartered in Geneva, is headed by the Secretary-General.

Prof Celeste Saulo of Argentina has been appointed as the first female Secretary-General of the WMO.

Mohapatra's election is expected to allow India to influence the global policy on early warnings and disasters.

Similarly, Ravichandran's election at the ATCM may allow India to play an important role in polar research.