Indian and UK Academics, Researchers and Industry experts led by University of Bristol and Indian Institute of Technology Bombay deliberated sand-pit of ideas on Water Security of Indian Rivers from Himalayas in a virtual workshop, jointly funded by UKIERI and DST.
Himalayan water resources system is a complex one. It is not significant just for India or South-Asia but holds its importance for global climate scenarios. In past, though many research efforts were undertaken by various teams, still many processes are not fully understood due to lack of field observations, lack of access to hydro-meteorological datasets, causing significant uncertainties in modelling and assessing the current and future water availability. This in-turn limits preparedness and adaptability for future climate scenarios.
Recognising the importance of the issue, researchers from India and UK participated in a virtual 5-day workshop and unanimously agreed there is an urgent need to address these issues through concerted research and development efforts by forming a research consortium.
The workshop that was proposed to be delivered in-person at IIT Bombay but finally happened virtually, was designed on 15+5 format - 15 researchers from host country, India and 5 from guest country, UK. The idea was to get the best researchers from top institutions from both countries to engage and deliberate deeply on a thematic area, form consortia and bid for bigger global research funding. The underlying vision is to facilitate innovations for industry or societal engagement.
The workshop was delivered jointly by IIT Bombay and Bristol University online from 7 - 11 September 2020. Key speakers included prominent leaders in academia and policy from not just UK but other countries like Utrecht University, Netherlands and leaders from Department of Science & Technology and Central Water Commission, Government of India, thus making this workshop not just bilateral but truly global.
Participant universities from the UK/Europe included University of Bristol, University of Exeter and University of Utrecht. There were 31 participants from top Indian universities like IIT Bombay, IIT Roorkee, IIT Kanpur, IIT Indore, IISc Bangalore, National Institute of Hydrology Roorkee, National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research Goa, Jawaharlal Nehru University and IISER Bhopal.
During the workshop, researchers deliberated on possible methods for integrating on-site data with remote sensing observations to fill gaps. Experts identified the need for estimating catchment scale water cycle variability for Himalayan rivers can help define regional water security parameters. The group talked about important policy level changes on water governance that may minimize any threats to water security for households, farmers, and industries in the region. The workshop ended with identifying possible funding agencies for securing funds a bigger research project on this theme that the consortium will be working.
Based on the intense discussions and deliberations on the above aspects, the lead coordinators have identified the current understanding and research gaps, research priorities, ways to strengthen the water resource research infrastructure in Himalayas and possible collaborative research projects ideas. The workshop helped them to identify the potential partners for forming a consortium to carry forward the research priorities identified.
The consortium members are working to produce a white paper and, potentially, a published review paper with a roadmap for future research priorities on water security in Himalayas.
Consortium formed of UK and Indian researchers will join up their strengths and academic excellence to work collaboratively on a theme such as water security of Himalayan rivers that has implications on global climate change. They will jointly publish joint papers and will be able to bid for bigger research funding in near future. Both India and UK continue to be strong partners in their efforts to combat climate change.
