Bhubaneswar: Eminent son of Odisha and Director General of India Meteorological Department (IMD) Dr. Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, who recently won the United Nations Sasakawa Award 2025 for Disaster Risk Reduction, was felicitated by the Indian Meteorological Society (IMS) Bhubaneswar Chapter and Science for Common People Society (SCOPES) in a meeting at the Meteorological Centre in Bhubaneswar.
Prof. U.C. Mohanty, President of SCOPES, praised Dr. Mohapatra’s achievement and emphasized the importance of organizations like SCOPES in propagating scientific knowledge among common people to build climate-resilient communities.
Mohapatra expressed his gratitude and noted that such organizations are essential in disseminating scientific knowledge to the public, ensuring a climate-resilient community. The event was attended by other eminent members, including Manorama Mohanty, Nihar Ranjan Das, Mithun Karmakar, Ajay Kumar Mahakud, and R.K. Mohapatra.
The UN award recognizes Mohapatra’s ground-breaking work in minimizing deaths due to cyclones in the north Indian Ocean region, benefiting not only India but also 13 other countries in the region.
The theme of the 2025 award, “Connecting science to people: Democratizing access to innovation and technology for disaster-resilient communities,” highlights the significance of Dr. Mohapatra’s contributions. This accolade reaffirms India’s growing role in advancing global disaster risk management.
