Author: Vishal Mehta

BUMP website transitions

Posted on by Vishal Mehta

Hello everyone!

In 2024, I  celebrate 10 years that the BUMP website has been operational!

With my departure from the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) – from Jan 1 2024 –  this site will now be maintained by myself and supported by my environmental firm, “Leafbird Consulting LLC”.

I aim to keep this site running. If you would like to help, there are at least 2 ways:

  1. You can help fund the costs involved in keeping the website going.
  2. I would love to collaborate with you on the urban metabolism of Bengaluru and other Indian cities. Please contact me to co-produce additional knowledge on urban sustainability that we can share on BUMP into the future.

I thank everyone who has been part of this journey, and invite you to keep going with me!

With warm wishes for a safe and happy 2024,

Vishal Mehta, PhD
Co-founder and Senior Consultant,
Leafbird Consulting LLC
Davis, California

 

 

 

Bangalore Urban Metabolism Project Episode 1: Introduction

Posted on by Vishal Mehta

This episode introduces the Bangalore Urban Metabolism Project (BUMP), an initiative of the Stockholm Environment Institute with the Indian Institute of Management – Bangalore (IIM-B) and the Indian Institute of Science. Dr. Deepak Malghan talks about the different challenges that Bangalore (Bengaluru) faces surrounding water, including water supply, demand, and hydrology. The key questions motivating the project are described.
Film by Karthik Shetty.

    Bangalore Urban Metabolism Project Episode 2: Objectives

    Posted on by Vishal Mehta

    In this episode, the origins of the Bangalore Urban Metabolism Project (BUMP) are explained by SEI’s Dr. Vishal Mehta. Dr. Deepak Malghan, from the Indian Institute of Management – Bangalore (IIM-B), explains the interactions between efficiency, sustainability and equity. The Indian Institute of Science’s Dr. Sekhar Muddu explains the major questions concerning the city’s groundwater that are addressed in this project.
    Film by Karthik Shetty.

      Bangalore Urban Metabolism Project Episode 3: Monitoring

      Posted on by Vishal Mehta

      In this episode, Dr. Sekhar Muddu (Indian Institute of Science) – along with his researchers Sanjeeva Murthy and P. Giriraj – go into the details of the groundwater monitoring that was conducted in Bangalore from December 2015 through 2017. At 150 locations, every month, the groundwater levels were manually measured. The data collected will be analyzed to understand the groundwater budget for the city.

      Film by Karthik Shetty.

        Bangalore Urban Metabolism Project Episode 4: Challenges and Learnings

        Posted on by Vishal Mehta

        SEI’s Dr. Vishal Mehta starts this episode with some of the main challenges of the Bangalore Urban Metabolism Project (BUMP). Dr. Mehta and Dr. Deepak Malghan, from the Indian Institute of Management – Bangalore (IIM-B), discuss some of the learnings and how these could be linked up with the policy-making apparatus. Examples from other places are presented.
        Film by Karthik Shetty.

          Groundwater measurements ongoing: Video

          Posted on by Vishal Mehta

          Since December 2015, the Bangalore Urban Metabolism Project has been measuring groundwater depths in 150 locations in Bangalore, every month. This video shows one such measurement, near Avenue Road, made by Giriraj and Sanjeeva, from the Indian Institute of Science.

          Although each measurement takes only a few minutes, traveling through Bangalore traffic takes hours. On October 24th, 2016, I joined P Giriraj and Sanjeeva Murthy for a day in which we measured groundwater depth at 15 locations in different parts of Bangalore. Just 15 measurements on a day took 8 hours, thanks to traffic!


          Video captured by Dr. Vishal Mehta, Stockholm Environment Institute.

          Bengaluru’s water insecurity is manifested in the diversity of its household water supply portfolio

          Posted on by Vishal Mehta

          Households manage their present and future financial needs using portfolios, with diversification being a key tool used to balance risks and returns. Indian households manage their water in a very analogous way to how they manage their financial and other assets. Households cope with the essential water insecurity imposed by inadequate public water supply, by investing in a diversity of water supply and demand management options. Understanding this complex household level water supply and demand balance in Indian cityscapes is essential for at least four compelling reasons: Continue reading →

            Why all (Urban) Hydrology is Social Hydrology? Evidence from Bengaluru, India

            Posted on by Vishal Mehta

            Location: University of Chicago, Delhi campus
            Date: Tuesday, March 8, 2016
            Authors: Deepak Malghan, Vishal Mehta, A. Nehra, R. Goswami, E. Kemp-Benedict, S. Muddu, C. Mathur, B. Thomas, V. Srinivasan, D. Wong, M. Gautam, V.Vivek, D. Sharma
            Presenter: Dr. Deepak Malghan

            Dr. Deepak Malghan was invited to present at the U. Chicago – Delhi campus EPIC India seminar series.

            This presentation covered many aspects of the research team’s work, from water demand surveys to groundwater sampling and modeling, to initial results from the survey.

              Can technology make urban social hydrology legible? Water wisdom, citizen science, and democratic deliberation

              Posted on by Vishal Mehta

              Location: Hotel Taj West End, Bangalore
              Date: Thursday, February 11, 2016
              Authors: Deepak Malghan and Vishal Mehta
              Presenter: Dr. Deepak Malghan

              Dr. Deepak Malghan was an invited speaker at the Confederation of Indian Industry’s Annual Water Conference titled

              “Indusry-Government-Community Partnerships for Sustainable Water Management”