Shri Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways of India, inaugurated the 8th Edition of the India Water Impact Summit (IWIS) on November 22, 2023, at the Dr Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi.
The summit, organized by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) and the Center for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies (cGanga), spans three days from November 22 to 24, 2023.
The theme of IWIS 2023 is ‘Development vis-à-vis Land, Water and Rivers,’ aimed at uniting scientific experts, stakeholders, and government representatives to address dynamic challenges and opportunities in India’s water sector.
In a momentous prelude to the International Water Innovation Summit 2023 (IWIS) and the 1st CITIS Summit, a special session titled “River Cities Alliance – A Global Step Forward (GRCA) was also held and was attended by delegates from Ethiopia, Denmark, Mexico, the Federal Republic of Germany, Bhutan, United Kingdom, Nepal and Japan.
The India Water Impact Summit (IWIS) was first launched in 2012 during the evolution of the Ganga River Basin Management Plan (GRBMP) by the Consortium of 7 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) to bring clarity to the myriad scientific, technological, socio-cultural, legal, policy and governance issues pertaining to river basin management in India in the context of highly diverse and divergent stakeholder interests, perceptions and understanding of river processes.
The present Summit is a coupled system of twin summits – the India Water Impact Summit (IWIS) and the Climate Investment and Technology Impact Summit (CITIS), wherein the latter summit is streamlined to bind potential investors with technology providers after review and testing of new technologies and innovative business models, implementation of proven new technologies, adopting suitable financing mechanisms, and collaborating within multiple sectors such as energy, agriculture, urban management, transport, and infrastructure development that are intricately linked with climate, air, land, rivers, and water management.