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The N.D. Gulhati memorial lecture is delivered at the ICID International Congress on Irrigation and Drainage by an invited eminent expert from across the world. The aim is to provide an international status and significant developments in irrigation and drainage engineering including all allied aspects like environment, sociology, economics etc.
BACKGROUND
Late President Honoraire N.D. Gulhati of India has been rightly called ”the father’ of the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) which was set up in 1950 with its headquarters (Central Office) at 48, Nyaya Marg, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi — 110 021 in India.
Mr. Gulhati was an eminent civil engineer, India's principal negotiator on the Indus Water Treaty (1960), the recipient of Padma Bhushan awarded by the President of India for his distinguished services of a high order and a Water Resources Consultant to the United Nations Institutions, like, IDA, ESCAP and The World Bank.
In the loving memory of Mr. Gulhati, his family represented by Mr. Shashi Gulhati, has set apart an Endowment Fund with a view to organizing *N.D. Gulhati Memorial Lecture for International Cooperation in Irrigation and Drainage’ at every ICID Congress as a mark of respect and for perpetuating his memory in appreciation of the services rendered by him to the field of irrigation and drainage. The lecture will be delivered at the ICID Congress by an invited lecturer from amongst the known and eminent participants to the Congress. As a token of appreciation, an honorarium of US$ 1000 will be paid to the invited lecturer out of the proceeds of the Endowment Fund created for this purpose by Gulhati family.
AIMS
The memorial lecture aims at —
- Providing an international talk, reporting on significant developments in irrigation and drainage engineering including all allied aspects like environment, sociology, economics etc.
- Perpetuating the memory of late N.D. Gulhati who dedicated his entire professional life to the development of irrigation engineering and who conceived and implemented the concept of an International Commission for ensuring international cooperation on advancing the world knowledge in the fields of irrigation, drainage, flood management and river training.
Following eminent experts delivered the N.D. Gulhati Memorial Lecture in the past.
| Year | Topic of the Lecture |
|---|---|
| 2023 | Hon'ble Mr. Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Cabinet Minister, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Govt. of India, deliver the lecture on "Ensuring Water and Food Security Through Climate Resilient Infrastructure". [ Full Paper ] |
| 2022 | Hon. Karlene Maywald, South Australian Water Ambassador and Chair of the Australian National Water Commission (Australia) delivered the lecture on "Putting People at the Heart of What We Do". [ Full Paper ] 24th Congress postponed from 2020 due to COVID-19 Pandemic |
| 2017 | Dr. Felipe Ignacio Arreguín Cortés, Director General, Mexican Institute of Water Technology / Instituto Mexicano de Tecnología del Agua (IMTA) on “Reforms in the Administration of Irrigation Systems: Mexican Experiences’’. [ Full Paper ] |
| 2014 | Mr. Jeremiah R.D. Lengoasa, Deputy Secretary-General, World Meteorological Organization (WMO) on “Climate Variability and Change: Impacts on Water Availability” at Gwangju, Republic of Korea [ Full Paper ] [ Presentation ] |
| 2011 | Dr. Charles M. Burt (USA) on “The Irrigation Sector Shift from Construction to Modernization: What is required for Success”? at Tehran, Iran [ Full Paper and Presentation] |
| 2008 | Prof. Dr. Chandra A. Madramootoo (Canada), Vice President Hon., ICID on “Irrigation in Context of Today’s Global Food Crisis” at Lahore, Pakistan [Full Paper] |
| 2005 | Er. Albert J. Clemmens (USA) on “A Process-Based Approach to Improving the Performance of Irrigated Agriculture” at Beijing, China [Full Paper] |
| 1999 | Er. R. Rajkumar, Prof. N.V. Pundarikanthan, Er. K.R. Chezian (India) on “Controlled Water Saving Method for Paddy Cultivation - A Case Study” – prize winning paper for young professionals at Granada, Spain |
| 1996 | Ms. Margreet Z. Zwarteveen (Sri Lanka) on “A Plot of One’s Own: Gender Relations and Irrigated Land Allocation Policies in Burkina Faso” – prize winning paper for young professionals at Cairo, Egypt |
| 1993 | Er. Marvin E. Jensen (USA), President Hon., ICID on “The Impacts of Irrigation and Drainage on the Environment” at The Hague, Netherlands |
| 1990 | Late W.R. Rangeley (UK), President Hon., ICID on “Irrigation at a Crossroads” at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| 1987 | Late Adriaan Volker (The Netherlands), Vice President Hon., ICID on “Role of Failures and Negative Secondary effects in the Development of Irrigation, Drainage and Flood Control” at Casablanca, Morocco |
| 1984 | Late K.K. Framji (India), President Hon., ICID on “Past and Likely Future Developments in Irrigation and Drainage and Flood Control Measures in Developing Countries” at Fort Collins, USA |
| 1981 | Er. M. Holy (Czech Rep.), President Hon., ICID on “Irrigation Systems and their Role in the Food Crisis” at Grenoble, France |
We appreciate Gulhati family who donated, in 1981, a modest fund to ICID towards organizing `N.D. Gulhati Memorial Lecture for International Cooperation in Irrigation and Drainage’ as a mark of respect and for perpetuating his memory in appreciation of the services rendered by him to the field of irrigation and drainage.
