Meghalaya scientists study Sohra’s record rainfall to boost 5G, 6G networks

Scientists at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Meghalaya and the North Eastern Space Applications Centre (NESAC) are planning to use Sohra’s extreme rainfall to develop better 5G and 6G connectivity systems. The project, still in its early stages, aims to understand how the region’s massive raindrops and intense downpours affect high-frequency communication signals.

After shifting to their permanent campus earlier this year, researchers observed that the size and force of raindrops in Sohra — one of the wettest places on Earth — often disrupted signal transmission. The team now hopes to turn this challenge into a research opportunity.

“The rainfall here is unlike anything we’ve seen elsewhere,” said Dr Anup Dandapat, Dean (Academic Affairs) at NIT Meghalaya. “We want to treat Sohra as a natural laboratory to study how rainfall interacts with high-frequency signals and eventually design networks that can withstand such conditions.”

While groundwork for the project has begun, researchers say it will take time before tangible outcomes emerge. Once fully underway, the study could pave the way for rain-resilient networks, particularly beneficial for hilly and remote areas where monsoon-induced disruptions are common.

Sohra, formerly known as Cherrapunji, remains both a scientific and natural marvel. For the teams at NIT Meghalaya and NESAC, each downpour represents a potential data source for developing technology that can adapt to nature’s extremes.

In a separate milestone, NIT Meghalaya has successfully designed and fabricated the state’s first integrated chip (IC) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology’s Special Manpower Development Programme (SMDP). Developed by a team led by Dr Prabir Saha, Dr Shubhankar Majumdar and Dr Pradeep Kumar Rathore, along with PhD scholars Geetima Kachari, Parishmita Goswami and Deibaphira Suchiang, the Finite State Machine (FSM) chip was produced at the Semiconductor Laboratory (SCL) foundry using 180-nanometre process technology.

The chip, built to provide precise control in irrigation systems and tensiometers, was presented to Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the SEMICON India 2025 summit, highlighting the role of academic research in advancing India’s semiconductor ambitions.

Dr Dandapat said the two initiatives — the rain-impact study and the chip design — show how research institutions in the Northeast are increasingly aligning with national goals of technological innovation. “Our aim is to turn regional challenges into solutions that can serve the entire country,” he added.

The NIT team is also developing a second chip designed to study environmental factors influencing plant growth, which could further boost agricultural technology in the region. (With inputs from PTI)