Rain check revolution

A citizen science initiative collects localised precipitation data in and around Pune to help people gain insights on rainfall patterns

- NIDHI JAMWAL

FOR SIX years now, 63-year-old Lata Hiremath has a standard morning routine: she goes up to the terrace garden of her house in Wadgaonsheri, Pune, where she has set up a rain gauge to collect and measure rainwater. She shares the readings in a WhatsApp group with 59 others, who do the same. The volunteers, who call themselves Varun Mitra (friends of the rain god), share daily rainfall data from 52 locations, including Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Nashik and villages like Mugawali and Kamshet.