IIT Kharagpur collaborates with British Geological Survey to turn Varanasi into smart city

IIT Kharagpur collaborates with British Geological Survey to turn Varanasi into smart city

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur has collaborated (सहयोग किया) with the British Geological Survey to turn Varanasi into a smart city. Three dimensional geological (भूवैज्ञानिक) modelling of the geology under Varanasi will be prepared to help improve the building of new transport and service infrastructure. Further, according to a release shared by the IIT, the preservation of archaeological(पुरातात्विक) sites and the management of flooding hazards (बाढ़ के खतरे) and the sustainability of water supplies would also be undertaken.

The potential degradation of resources and environment affects both the city and its rural hinterland (आंतरिक इलाके) (catchment) but few studies consider them as a linked ecosystem, explained Abhijit Mukherjee, Project Leader at IIT Kharagpur’s Department of Geology and Geophysics. Faculty members Probal Sengupta (Geology and Geophysics) and Joy Sen (Architecture and Regional Planning & RGCGSIDM) are working as co-Investigators in the project. 

The project includes application of geoscientific methods (e.g. drilling, geological, geophysical, tectonics, hydrogeological and remote sensing). It aims to delineate(चित्रित करना) the evolution of Varanasi and other future of cities of India, from the hazard zonation/mitigation of the city. The retrieved information on rock and sediment lithologies, physical and chemical characteristics, geotechnical properties, hazard potential and groundwater distribution and flow will lead to construction of a multi-scale 3D conceptual model to allow visualisation of the ground beneath the city.

According to the release, it would be the first major 3D subsurface urban study and planning of its kind in India, with the ultimate aim of developing methodologies and input of suburban geology for planning and hazard risk assessment, said Dr Martin Smith, Director Science, British Geological Survey.

“The ultimate aim is to develop the methodologies and approaches of urban geosciences and engineering to urban geology at Varanasi as a pilot for other cities and to inform India’s Smart City mission” added Mukherjee.