Maitri Water Nexus for Advancing Australia-India Collaboration

This project will bring together Australian and Indian water professionals, academics, researchers, water utilities, industries and water policy managers.

We are planning workshops in India and Australia to bring water professionals together for knowledge sharing, research collaboration and business development between countries with multifaceted water challenges.

About the project

This project will lay the foundation for long-term collaborations and partnerships in water management between the two nations both facing multifaceted water management threats from freshwater resource shortages, extreme climate variation and unprecedented population growth especially from Indian context.

Addressing these challenges requires the application of innovative and state of art technologies and developing means to mainstream adoption of these systems for efficient management of water resources and systems.

There are 4 workshops planned in India and Australia. Victoria University is the lead agency for this project, supported by several key partners in India.

Workshops & events

The project includes a series of four workshops hosted in Australia and India, designed to facilitate collaboration, knowledge exchange, and stakeholder engagement in the water sector.

Each workshop will bring together researchers, industry professionals, water utilities, consultants, and policy stakeholders to discuss emerging technologies and strategies for improving water management systems.

The workshops will be hosted by partner institutions. The aim of these workshops is to conduct deliberations on the opportunities and challenges in the mainstream adoption of AI, ML and technologies in Water Management and share knowledge between the two countries including exploring market for local technologies.

It is expected that these new approaches and technologies will bring some of the following opportunities in better water resources and water infrastructure management and operations:

Real time water quality monitoring
Water treatment enhancement
Demand forecasting and resource optimisation
Predictive maintenance and asst management
Leaks and burst detection
Pumping system operation optimisation
Sewer network overflow predictions
Wastewater treatment enhancement
Flood risk and climate adaptability
Smart and efficient irrigation systems and efficiency improvement

Workshop venues

: First workshop was organised at the Indian Institute of Technology in Roorkee, India on 8–9 December 2025.
The workshop was attended by water professionals, water utilities, water related state agencies, academia, researchers, technology providers and higher degree research students from Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Bihar and Arunachal Pradesh states of India.
Contact: Professor Pramod Kumar Sharma, [email protected]
: The second Workshop will be organised at Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia on 21–22 September 2026.
Representatives from water utilities from various Australian states, university academics and researchers and a delegation from India will be attending this workshop.
Contact: Ashok Sharma, [email protected]
: The third workshop will be organised on 15–16 December 2026 at the National Institute of Technology in Nagpur, India.
We expect that water professionals, state water regulatory agencies, university academics and researchers form Indian states of Maharashtra, Telangana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh will participate in this workshop.
Contact: Professor Rajesh Gupta, [email protected]
: The fourth workshop will be organised at RV Engineering College, Bangaluru, Karnataka during December 2027.
Water professional from Indian states of Kerela, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andra Pradesh and Odisha will participate in this workshop.
Contact: Associate Professor Jyoti Shetty, [email protected]

About the Maitri Grant

The project has been funded under Maitri Grant Program. This program has been established by the Centre for Australia-India Relations to support projects that will strengthen the Australia-India relationship in new and innovative ways across several sectors.

The Centre for Australia-India Relations is a national platform established by the Australian Government in 2023 to support and facilitate greater collaboration and engagement with India. The centre works across all levels of government, industry, academia and civil society to build greater understanding of the Australia-India relationship and the opportunities flowing from two nations burgeoning connections.

Through this program, the centre encourages impactful and innovative projects and partnerships that reflect the dynamism of the bilateral relationship, fostering life-long connections in trade, education, innovation, research, arts, and culture.

Objectives of the grant

Fostering institutional collaboration through activities such as workshops, exchanges and joint initiatives.
Strengthening people-to-people connections between professionals, researchers and industry stakeholders in both countries.
Supporting dialogue and knowledge exchange on issues relevant to the Australia–India relationship.
Enhancing engagement between Australian and Indian organisations, enabling collaboration in research, innovation and industry development.

Project partners

The Maitri Water Nexus project brings together leading academic institutions and industry organisations from Australia and India to support knowledge exchange, research collaboration and industry engagement in water management.

These partners contribute to strengthening Australia–India collaboration in water research, innovation and industry engagement, supporting the development of practical solutions to shared water management challenges.

Academic partners

These institutions host the project workshops in India and contribute expertise in water engineering, infrastructure systems and emerging technologies:

Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (India)
Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology Nagpur (India)
RV College of Engineering Bengaluru (India)

Industry & research partners

These organisations support the project through industry engagement, knowledge exchange and participation in workshops and discussions on emerging water management technologies: