IIT Delhi, Delhi Jal Board Sign MoU to Address Water Security Issues Faced by NCT of Delhi

IIT Delhi has entered into an MoU with Delhi Jal Board (DJB), Govt. of NCT of Delhi, under which they will collaborate with each other to address water security related issues being faced by Delhi. 

Under the MoU, IIT Delhi and DJB will collaborate on identified Research & Development initiatives in the areas of Water Supply and Distribution; Wastewater Conveyance, Treatment, Recycle/Reuse and Disposal. Both sides will work towards development of policy and best practice initiatives for wastewater treatment and its reuse/recycling to achieve the goal of zero waste discharge into drains and River Yamuna.

The other areas of collaboration, which the MoU covers, include: 

• IIT Delhi, DJB will work together to build shared knowledge platforms and to disseminate data and information products to improve understanding of Water and Wastewater Management alternatives for NCT of Delhi.
• Collaborate to jointly develop Smart Operation and Management framework for DJB’s Water and Wastewater Infrastructure.
• Collaborate to jointly develop effective and efficient strategies for Management, Improvement and Rehabilitation of DJB’s Water Distribution and Wastewater Conveyance Systems.
• Collaborate to develop Continuing Education and Training Modules for in-service officers of DJB.

“The Memorandum of Understanding seeks to foster a collaborative partnership between IIT Delhi and Delhi Jal Board, Govt. of NCT of Delhi, based on shared interests in the area of Water and Wastewater Management and Policy Infrastructure within the overarching domain of Water Security and its Sustainability under present and future climate scenarios”, said Mr Udit Prakash Rai, CEO, Delhi Jal Board. 

“This MoU will provide a platform to facilitate collaboration between IIT Delhi and DJB in joint studies, research, training and data sharing in problems of common interest such as Operation & Management, Policy and Planning of Water and Wastewater Infrastructure”, said Prof. Dhanya CT, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Delhi. 

In February 2019, IIT Delhi, under the aegis of Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer (FITT), had entered into an international collaboration to develop new approaches to tackle the challenges and barriers to water security and sustainable development (WSSD) with a special focus on NCT of Delhi. The project is funded by Global Challenge Research Fund (GCRF) of the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). 

“The MoU between IIT Delhi and the DJB is of mutual benefit and serves as an indication of continued interest in cooperation to majorly use the findings of the international collaboration funded by the UKRI for addressing the water security issues faced by NCT Delhi,” said Prof. A K Gosain, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Delhi. 

The international collaboration aims to bring together leading global experts from academia, industry, and government of NCT of Delhi to understand the complexity of water issues and address the impending challenge of water security for all.