Roorkee (The Hawk): The Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IIT Roorkee), Department of Hydrology, inaugurates the Natural-hazard Symposium for the Indian Himalayas 2022 (NSIH 2022) on October 12, 2022, under Co-PREPARE. Co-PREPARE is a newly established UGC and DAAD-funded project at the department of Hydrology, IIT Roorkee, and Institute for Environmental Sciences and Geography, University of Potsdam, Germany, focusing on natural hazards in the Indian Himalayan region. Co-PREPARE facilitates cooperation between the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IIT Roorkee) and the University of Potsdam (UP) to build capacity in joint hazard research by sharing expertise and creating new knowledge together. Directors of both the institutes, namely Prof. Ajit Kumar Chaturvedi, Director IIT, Roorkee, and Prof. Axel Bronstert, Director of the Institute for Environmental Sciences and Geography, University of Potsdam, Germany graced the conference.
The planned “Natural-hazard symposium for Indian Himalayas 2022" from October 12 to October 13, 2022 centers on the theme, 'Global Change and Impacts in Mountains'. The conference aims to create awareness of multiple research perspectives in the Indian Himalayan region to understand the historic perspective from the experts and how they see future scenarios unfolding. The intention is to create a dialogue among various practitioners and researchers active in the Himalayan region. These discussions will provide guidelines for future research on natural-hazard domains in the Indian Himalayas.
The keynote talks were given by experts on the emerging hydro-climatological extremes, risk, vulnerability, adaptation, and citizen science in the Indian Himalayan Region. The panel discussions focused on the Concurrent and compounding multi-hazards in the Himalayan to highlight the multidisciplinary aspect of the natural-hazard domain and the need for collaborative interdisciplinary efforts.
The list of speakers and panelists included Prof. Ajit Kumar Chaturvedi, Director IIT, Roorkee; Prof. Oliver Günther, President of the University of Potsdam, Germany; Prof. Brijesh Kumar Yadav, Head, Department of Hydrology, IIT Roorkee; Prof. Dr. Axel Bronstert, Director of the Institute for Environmental Sciences and Geography, University of Potsdam, Germany; Prof. N.K. Goel, Department of Hydrology, IIT Roorkee; Prof. A.P. Dimri, Director, Indian Institute of Geomagnetism (IIG), Mumbai, India; Mr. S.L. Kapil, Executive Director (R&D/Geo-Tech), Research & Development Divn., President, ISEG, NHPC Ltd.; Prof. Manoj K. Jain, Department of Hydrology, IIT Roorkee; Prof. Himanshu Joshi, Department of Hydrology, IIT Roorkee; Prof. M.L. Sharma, Earthquake Engineering Department, IIT Roorkee; Prof. Sumit Sen, Head, Centre of Excellence in Disaster Mitigation and Management (CoEDMM); Dr. Wolfgang Schwanghart, Institute for Environmental Sciences and Geography, University of Potsdam, Germany; Prof. D. S. Arya, Department of Hydrology, IIT Roorkee; Dr. Jürgen Mey, Institute for Environmental Sciences and Geography, University of Potsdam, Germany; Prof. Ajanta Goswami, Earth Sciences, IIT Roorkee; Dr. Adrien Paris, Co-founder and CEO, Hydromatters; Dr. Julien Malard, G-EAU, IRD, France; Mrs. Somya Bhatt, Climate Change Advisor, Climate Change Advisor, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH; Prof. Ankit Agarwal, Assistant Professor, Department of Hydrology, IIT Roorkee; Prof. Bhaskar Jyoti Deka, Department of Hydrology, IIT Roorkee; Prof. Ashutosh Sharma, Assistant Professor, Department of Hydrology, IIT Roorkee.
During his inaugural speech, Prof. Ajit K Chaturvedi, Director, IIT Roorkee, highlighted, “The contemporary world is facing increasingly complex risks. We need technological solutions to address these risks. We endeavor to keep abreast of the challenges and opportunities in the field of disaster mitigation and management. The natural-hazard symposium for Indian Himalayas 2022 seeks to contribute towards the national vision in this domain.” Prof. Dr. Axel Bronstert, Director of the Institute for Environmental Sciences and Geography, University of Potsdam, Germany, said, "The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) represents a significant role in the world's mountain ecosystems. And NSIH 2022 is a platform to discuss current research findings and future prospects in the natural-hazard domain in the Himalayan region. Moreover, such interdisciplinary and international collaborative efforts enhance scientific discovery and translational research."
Speaking at the event, Prof. Brijesh K Yadav highlighted “the 50-year journey of the department and its core strength to handle multi-hazards. Prof. Brijesh said the department has a strong international footprint and interdisciplinary approach to advancing science and contributing to society. He further welcomes cooperation to strengthen the presence of the department and institute in the core domain of Natural Hazards and Risks. Prof. Brijesh acknowledges that developing new skills for early career researchers through hands-on training will bring a fresh perspective to the research domain hence advancing science-communication.”
Prof. Ankit Agarwal, convener of NSIH2022 shared the vision of NSIH2022 stating that “NISH aims threefold: discuss the current and future research in the Himalayan region; create a dialogue among stakeholders and develop new skills for early career researchers. The symposium will be a platform where we will hear voices from all the domains involved in natural hazards, i.e., practitioners, scientists, and the younger generation entering this field.”
All the dignitaries on the dais released the symposium proceedings and, the inaugural ended with National Anthem.
