Deeksha Katyal

EXPERIENCE
Faculty | Jan 2008-Till date
Guru Gobind Singh lndraprastha University, Delhi (A State Government funded University)
Besides teaching subjects like Environmental Statistics , Environmental Instrumentation , Research Methodology & Env. Modeling to Master's students , the major administrative roles have been
•Coordinating activities of Viksit Bharat(‘Developed India’, a flagship program of Hon'ble PM ) cell of the University & Gender Champions Club wherein we conduct number of outreach programs for students and faculty.
•Have served as the Coordinating Faculty for the 'Heritage Club,' overseeing numerous activities that showcased our country's rich heritage through dance, music, and informative talks.
•Worked as an Associate director at the Office of International affairs of the University

Scientist |August 2005- August 2006
Institute of Himalayan Bioresource technology, Council of Scientific and Industrial research, Palampur, India
Major responsibilities included
•Standardization of the extraction procedure and instrumental conditions for the analysis of pesticide content in various matrices and depiction using index and vulnerability mapping

KEY RESEARCH AND EXPERTISE
•Water Quality Assessment & Mapping.‘ Research on water quality monitoring techniques, vulnerability and index mapping & modeling with emphasis on sustainability practices for better usability of water
•Emerging Contaminants & Microplastics: Microplastic and emerging contaminants pollution research & studying its impact on water bodies and remediation.
•Geospatial Technology in Environmental Health: Use of geospatial tools for health risk assessment in terms of carcinogenic and non carcinogenic risks.
•Environmental Diplomacy and Policy Advocacy: Promoting international collaborations for water governance, pollution control, and sustainable practices , deriving from traditional knowledge and water heritage practices

KEY POSITIONS IN SCIENCE DIPLOMACY AND POLICY ENGAGEMENT
•General Secretary, International Water Association (IWA), Water in Ancient Civilizations Specialist Group , 2023-Present .‘Leading international efforts to explore sustainable water management insights from historical practices, promoting global networks and scientific exchanges.
•Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), Committee Member (EIA of River Valley Projects), 2019 — Present : Contributed to drafting guidelines on Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Environmental health impact guidelines using geospatial techniques , thus influencing national standards in water resource management.
•Editorial Board Member, Earth Root Foundation e-Magazine, 2022-Till date : Promoting environmental awareness and innovation through this global platform, wherein I help my students to publish popular articles related to Environment.
•Subject Expert, Educational Consultants India Limited (EdClL) 2017 — 2023 : Served as an expert in the recruitment for Teachers in Odisha's government schools, enhancing science education standards.
•Panelist, 3rd ASEAN-India Grassroots Innovation Forum December 2022, Phnom Penh, Cambodia : Deliberated on water innovation strategies and strengthened ASEAN-India networks to harness innovative scientific solutions.
•Subject Expert, National Innovation Foundation (DST, India) 2020: Reviewed grassroots innovation initiatives to advance technology and science.
•Subject expert in Advisory Role for a World bank funded project on Ganga River Basin (Strategic Basin Planning) for AECOM , India : Provided technical expertise to support analytical framework for sustainable river basin management.

ACHEIVEMENTS AND RECOGNITIONS SPECIFIC TO SCIENCE POLICY
•Meeting the Honorable Prime Minister and Mann ki Baat Recognition : Met Hon'ble Prime Minister , Shri Narendra Modi on 1st July, 2015 for my recommendations given at Mygov.in for evaluating and mapping River Ganga. My recommendations were amongst the 15 selected from numerous suggestions given at the portal and were further suggested to respective ministries for implementation and execution. Further, my name was also mentioned by Hon'ble Prime Minister on May 28, 2017 in the monthly radio program called ’Mann ki Baat’, wherein he talks of issues and themes relevant to India
•Participated on Discussion on Climate Change policy initiatives for COP 21, 26th October, 2015 : Held discussion with Mr. Prakash Javadekar, former Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, on policy initiatives addressing climate change for COP21 agreement , that was to be held in Paris in November , 2015
•Executive Board Member, Women in Science and Engineering (WiSE) India , 2018 — Present: WiSE(India) facilitated 3 of my women doctoral students attend ’The Meeting of Asia and Pacific Women in Science and Technology’ and KWSE/ APNN International Young Women Science Camp” at Ewha Womens University, Seoul , Korea in 2019 and 2021.
•Besides the lectures and interactions with students across colleges and universities , I have also developed e-modules which facilitate the distant learning . 3 modules for e-PG Pathshala( under the aegis of University Grants Commission (UGC ),by Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) ) and 3 module for e-Gyankosh (for Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU)) have been developed . Both the platforms are government online portals that provides interactive e-content for postgraduate programs.

SELECTED LECTURES AND OUTREACH ACTIVITIES (LAST 3 YEARS)
Herein , I am mentioning only the selected lectures, aligning with OWSD's mission
•International Seminar titled ’Environment Protection and Upgrading.‘ Past , Present and Future ’jointly organized by the Institute of Water History and Water civilization, Hubei University, China & Hellenic Open University, Greece held on 5th June, 2025.‘ Delivered a lecture titled ’Sustainable water management strategies for Water conscious World’ .
•Conference of UNESCO Chair in Sustainable Water Services (UNECWAS) , Tampere University, Finland, held on 22nd May, 2025: Delivered an online lecture titled ’Innovative technologies from the eyes of a Water enthusiast’ .
•Fourth International Seminar on Water Culture sponsored by UNESCO , held on November 15-16 , 2024 at Lingqu, China Delivered a talk on ’Exploring Saraswati River Civilization : Tracing Ancient Hidden Past’ demonstrating how emerging theories justify the phenomenon of Climate change behind disappearance of Saraswati River.
•UNESCO and lWRHR's Third International Seminar on Water (l4th October 2023): Delivered a talk on 'Bringing Water Heritage Back to Forefront: Key to Achieving Sustainability in Water,' showcasing the intersection of traditional water knowledge and modern technologies in sustainable water management.
•VIPS-TC School of Engineering and Technology , Delhi (7th June, 2023): Expert talk on 'Emerging Mitigation Measures for Controlling Water Pollution,' contributing to global discourse on pollution control strategies.
•ASEAN-India Grassroots Innovation Forum, Phnom Penh, Cambodia (l9th December 2022): Delivered a lecture on "STI Cooperation in Grassroots Innovation between AMS and India for Resiliency," fostering international collaboration for sustainable water management.
•Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute (l8th April 2022): Lecture on "Progression of Innovative Technologies in Agricultural Applications," emphasizing cross-border knowledge transfer for agricultural sustainability.
•NAM countries S&T Centre & ASRT, Egypt (6th—7th April 2022): Lecture on "Role of Geospatial Technology in Enhancing Efficacy of Health Risk Assessment Related to Water Contamination," underscoring global cooperation in using scientific tools for environmental health.
•Jawahar Lal Nehru University JNU), Delhi (March-April 2022): Delivered two lectures in the Green Skill Development Program on 'Role of Statistics Education in Environmental Sampling and Analysis' and 'Index Mapping and Vulnerability Assessment for Classification of Zones in Terms of Water Quality.'