New Delhi, Jal Shakti Ministry and space agency ISRO on Monday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote the use of satellite technology and space applications for water resources management in the country.
The agreement was signed during a national workshop on R&D in water sector organized by the Jal Shakti Ministry at the Dr Ambedkar International Center here.
Under the MoU, the Department of Water Resources and ISRO will jointly work on 24 key research areas, including reservoir monitoring, water spread assessment, river flow analysis, satellite water quality assessment and studies on distribution of plastics in water bodies.
Addressing the workshop, Jal Shakti Union Minister CR Patel said water security is crucial to achieving the ‘Fixit Bharat’ target by 2047, and water-related challenges must be addressed through technology, innovation, traditional knowledge and public engagement.
“Water security is a critical foundation for achieving the Vixit Bharat Vision 2047. Solutions to water-related challenges must be driven by technology, innovation, traditional knowledge and people’s participation,” Patel said.
The minister said that the ministry supported many research studies over the past decade, including 113 directly sponsored projects, which helped develop practical solutions in the water sector.
Patel also launched the third phase of the Jal Sanchai Jan Bhagidari campaign and announced the target of setting up two lakh crore water conservation structures between June 2026 and May 2027. He said the previous phase had crossed 1.5 lakh crore structures.
The workshop also witnessed the launch of the Mission for Advancement in High Impact Areas – Water programme, a joint initiative of the Ministry of Jal Shakti and Anusandhan National Research Foundation, and an open call for startups, small, medium and micro enterprises under the Bharat Water Innovation Network platform.
ISRO Chairman and Space Minister V Narayanan said the agreement will deepen cooperation between the two organizations and promote the use of satellite-based applications for water management.
“Today’s space technology provides an unprecedented ability to monitor, evaluate, predict and manage water resources,” Narayanan said.
The partnership will support work in areas such as groundwater assessment, water resource monitoring and flood forecasting, he said, adding that cooperation between ISRO and the water resources sector dates back to 1982.
Shivkumar Kalyanaraman, CEO of ANRF, said that the MAHA-Water program will support multi-institutional projects involving academic institutions, laboratories, start-ups and industry partners.
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