Chinese intentions are not very clear. They may even be investing in this technology overtly for drought relief measures and covertly to create ‘weather weapons’. Such weapons have the potential of changing the direction of cyclonic storms, creating forest fires and flash floods in enemy territory. It is not only China but the US that is making significant investments in this field. The US military has developed advanced capabilities to selectively alter weather patterns. This is being done under the High-frequency Active Auroral Research Programme, an appendage of their Strategic Defense Initiative.

For India these experiments with the weather is a cause of concern, since it shares a long border with China. Flash floods in Himachal Pradesh have been caused by lake bursts in Tibet.

The writer is a research fellow at IDSA