[ad_1]
NEW DELHI: Initially, the Indian Department of Meteorology has included Gilgit-Baltistan and Muzaffarabad regions as part of its Jammu and Kashmir weather subdivision.
Gilgit-Baltistan and Muzaffarabad are territories currently under Pakistani occupation. India says that all Jammu and Kashmir is part of India, something that is disputed by Pakistan.
India first reported that India had included the two regions in its meteorological subdivision of Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday.
When asked, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Thursday that it had started mentioning the region in its national weather bulletin from Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh became two separate Union territories last year after the repeal of Article 370. However, it was not explicitly mentioned in the regional forecast for Northwest India, which it has started to do now.
The northwest meteorological division consists of nine subdivisions: J&K, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi-Chandigarh-Haryana, Punjab, eastern Uttar Pradesh, western Uttar Pradesh, eastern Rajasthan, and western Rajasthan.
“We will share the weather forecast for any region that is under Indian territory. Previously, Ladakh was part of the J&K state, but now the situation is different as it is a separate union territory, so when we mentioned Ladakh we decided to also mention Gilgit-Baltistan and Muzzafarabad, “said M. Mohaptra, Director General of Meteorology, Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), New Delhi.
The meteorological department also plans to establish a meteorological station in Ladakh soon.
Mohapatra also said that since IMD acts as a specialized Regional Weather Center for the South Asia region, it also has responsibility as an international agency.
“We provide cyclone forecasts to all member countries. From 2016 onwards, we have also been providing severe weather forecast bulletins to the South Asian Regional Cooperation Association (SAARC) countries that also include Pakistan, “he added.” We have been issuing alerts for severe weather events as an international practice. It’s just that we’ve now explicitly mentioned it in our regional forecast. “
The name change seems to convey a significant message. It comes just days after the Pakistan Supreme Court’s decision to allow Islamabad to hold elections in Gilgit-Baltistan. Last month, Pakistan’s highest court had allowed the federal government’s request to establish a provisional government and hold elections in the provincial assembly. India had filed a “strong protest” against the decision, saying that Pakistani institutions “had no locus standi in territories occupied illegally or by force.”
The Indian Foreign Ministry said New Delhi completely rejected such actions and that “continued attempts to introduce material changes in the Pakistani-occupied areas of the Indian territory of Jammu and Kashmir.” Pakistan’s foreign ministry issued a statement the same day, rejecting India’s charges.
.
[ad_2]
