Darjeeling gets new weather observatory

Amitava Banerjee | MP | Darjeeling: Darjeeling town has got a new weather observatory. The part-time observatory has been set up on the campus of St. Joseph's College, North Point, Darjeeling, by the Indian Meteorological Department, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India.

"Climate change is a worldwide phenomenon. Darjeeling Hills being an ecological hotspot, climate change has affected both the flora and fauna. The climate that we used to experience a decade ago is not the same as today. However, we do not have the data to substantiate this. We wanted to set up a weather station for this," stated Father Dr. Donatus Kujur, Principal of the College.

The college has Botany, Zoology and Geography departments. "The data collected from this weather station will benefit these departments. Collection of data using different instruments is also part of the syllabus. The weather station is looked after by students of these departments. They collect the data," added Father Donatus.

Data including temperature, rainfall and wind speed is collected twice a day and sent to IMD, Kolkata. The data is collected at 7 am and 5 pm daily.

"The IMD department installed the part time observatory at St. Joseph's College in Darjeeling on December 1. We mainly need the temperature and rainfall data from this observatory," stated Dr. G K Das, director, IMD, Kolkata.

Darjeeling has dubbed the setting up of the weather station as a very positive and praiseworthy endeavor.

"The students are getting hands-on experience in data collection and interpretation. In future it can be taken to the next level by making real time data available in public domains," stated Wing Commander (Retd) Praful Rao of Save the Hills, an NGO working in disaster management, especially the landslide arena.

St. Joseph's College is a Catholic minority coeducational degree and post-graduate college, managed by the Darjeeling Jesuits of North Bengal through St. Joseph's North Point College Educational Trust.

The college section began as a part of St. Joseph's School, which started its journey in 1888. In 1927, the college section (offering basically the intermediate course) was affiliated to Calcutta University. Later, with the establishment of the University of North Bengal in 1962, the college was affiliated to it.