Category: Research

IGCS Organized Indo-German Workshop with IIT and CSIR-CLRI

Posted on 12/03/202417/12/2024 by Rahul Rajkarnikar in Waste Management

The IGCS’ Indo-German workshop, in collaboration with CSIR-CLRI and Indian Institute of Technology, Madras was successfully organized on March 4-5, 2023 at IIT Madras.

Our Focus area Waste Management team comprising of Dirk Weichgrebe, PD Dr.-Ing. habil. , Prof. Vinu Ravikrishnan, @Dr. Dr. Mozhiarasi Velusamy have organized the Indo-German Workshop in collaboration with Dr. Srinivasan SV from CSIR-CLRI.

IGCS Focus Area Coordinators for Waste Management

IGCS, IITM & CSIR-CLRI is proud to have Dr. J Radhakrishnan IAS, Chennai city commissioner as our chief guest. They were present for the inaugural session of the Indo-German Workshop.

We thank our chief guest for his remarkable words and interests for improving the city’s waste management. And, their interest motivated the entire group to work further forward to create detailed regional concepts towards sustainable waste treatment.

We are happy to have wide range of participants/speakers i.e. Scientists, Regulatory authorities, NGOs, Waste management companies etc.

Panel discussion 1 centred to understand the needs of the smart city in the aspect of waste management. This panel discussion was moderated by Dr. B. Chandrasekaran, Distinguished Scientist CSIR and Former Director, CSIR-CLRI.

Similarly, Our panel discussion 2 also provided an opportunity to build joint project concepts moderated by Dr. Dirk Weichgrebe, Leibniz University, Hannover. We as an IGCS team strongly believe that we will take it forward to the next level with the potential speakers to move forward towards achieving SDGs and National missions on waste utilization and cleaner technologies.

We greatly thank Dr. Khulud Alsouleman, Ms. Marissa Catherine, Ms. Nhyiraba Ato-burns, Ms. Anusree N, Ms. Madhumidha M, Ms. Nishanthi R, for helping the event organization. IGCS greatly thank our chief guest, speakers and participants once again for the success of the event.

About IGCS Cooperation

IGCS is a source of inspiration and skills for proactive sustainability transformation in both research and teaching activities. The sustainable use of resources in times of climate change and forthcoming societal challenges is a pressing task. With the center’s offers and valuable human capital and solutions for various global challenges, the centre equips talents from German and Indian universities and collaborates with companies and NGOs to accept this challenge. IGCS welcomes liaison with new partners to tackle the present global challenges together.

IGCS Land Use Focus Area awarded Peri-Cene Project

Posted on 07/03/202417/12/2024 by Rahul Rajkarnikar in Lan Use / Rural and Urban Development

Dr. Christoph Woiwode, together with Prof. Sudhir Chella Rajan (IIT Madras) has been awarded a new research project entitled “Peri-Cene Tamil Nadu – Growth Management and Climate Change Adaptation in Peri-urban Madurai and Coimbatore”.

Having completed the previous Peri-Cene project with a focus on periurbanization in Chennai, the Government of Tamil Nadu had taken interest in developing a similar methodology for the smaller cities in the state. Consequently, the State Land Use Research Board, part of the State Planning Commission, funds this 14 months long study with approx. Rs 32 Lakhs (Euro 35,000).

This project will study the dynamics and processes of peri-urbanization in the tier-I cities of Madurai and Coimbatore. Its main objective is to develop a ‘blueprint’ methodological approach for the analysis of peri-urbanization on which tailor-designed recommendations for interventions can be proposed. Key thematic areas in focus are challenges of urban sprawl, labour migration, and issues of growth management in the context of climate change and sustainable development. Three main components comprise the overall research design. First, collecting data on peri-urbanization which will also assist in defining the peri-urban for each of the two selected cities in terms of its spatial extent and qualitative characteristics. Second, document the dynamics and features through the visualisation in maps and other scenario modelling tools (e.g. Gamification and Agent Based Modelling) that may also be used for decision making support and communicating findings. Third, a mapping of stakeholders in conjunction with an analysis of governance institutions to determine potential development scenarios and transformation pathways.

It is expected that the outcome will benefit several government authorities, such as Madurai & Coimbatore Urban Development Authorities; Dep. of Environment & Climate Change; Water Resources Dep.; Dep. of Agriculture; Dep. of Municipal Administration, Urban and Water Supply; Rural Development & Panchayat Raj Dep.

IGCS Team from Focus Area Water Management, Publishes Paper Linking Rainwater Harvesting and Catchment Water Balance in South India

Posted on 07/02/202417/12/2024 by Rahul Rajkarnikar in Water Management

The team consisting of IGCS Area Coordinator for the Focus Area Water Management, Prof. Dr. Nicola Fohrer, IGCS Alumni Dr. Nariman Mahmoodi and Dr. Chaogui Lei, and PD Dr. Paul D. Wagner from the Department of Hydrological and Water Resource Management at Kiel University, along with former IGCS Area Coordinator Prof. Dr. Balaji Narasimhan from the Department of Civil Engineering at IIT Madras, published a paper in Wiley‘s Hydrological Process, Volume 38, Issue 2, Feburary 2024. The team’s research is on the topic of “Enhancing hydrologic modelling through the representation of traditional rainwater harvesting systems: A case study of water tanks in South India.” (Read Here)

The study delves into the intricate dynamics of water management in South India, where strong wet and dry seasons prompted the development of water storage structures and diversions such as traditional water tanks alongside large dams. Despite their crucial role in irrigation, groundwater recharge, flood control, sediment reduction, and overall hydrological processes, these smaller water tanks have been overlooked in catchment modelling studies due to limited spatial information. Precise knowledge of such tanks and their spatial distribution can be recognized through remote sensing techniques. The team addresses the data scarcity, by using satellite imagery to quantify the hydrological properties of these water tanks. Leveraging the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT+) model, the research aims to enhance the representation of hydrological processes by integrating detailed information on water harvesting systems. By evaluating the impact of incorporating water tanks into the model, the study seeks to advance our understanding of hydrological processes in the region and improve streamflow simulations for informed water resource management.

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