Mr. Vijai Saran

Personal Information

Brief Profile

A graduate in Civil Engineering from National Institute of Technology, Allahabad, India (formerly known as Motilal Nehru Regional Engineering College) & M.Sc. in Hydropower Development, from Norwegian University of Science & Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway. Has more than 34 years of proffessional experience in the field of Planning & Design of water resources projects and myriads of activities in areas crucial for sustainable development and management of water resources. Commenced his career in Central Water Commission as Assistant Director in April, 1990 through Indian Engineering Services and  superannuated from government service on 31.12.2024 as Chief Engineer, Central Water Commission.  Possess expertise in the area of Dam Safety & Rehabilitation, Planning & Design of Concrete & Earthen Dams, Planning & Design of Barrages & Canals, Design of Anti-Erosion/River training works & Flood Management projects.

Publications

• Technical paper titled “Application of latest Numerical Methods in Geo-technical engineering- A case study of FEM analysis of underground powerhouse cavern of Sardar Sarovar Project” was authored and presented at National Workshop on Numerical Methods at IIT Delhi in December 1994. The co-author was Sh K.R. Subramanian, Director, CWC.
• Technical paper titled “Water Resources of Upper Ganga Basin- Development & Issues” was authored and presented at the 18th Indian Engineering Congress held at Lucknow in December 2003. The co-author was Sh B.M. Upadhyay, Chief Engineer, CWC.
• Technical paper titled “Three Dimensional Numerical Analysis of Underground works at Xiaolangdi Multi-purpose Project in China” was authored and presented at the World Tunnel Congress held at Agra in September 2008. The co-author was Proff Einar Broch, NTNU, Norway.
• Technical paper titled “Planning of River Training Works- Farrakka Barrage Project- A case study” was authored and presented at the 7th International R&D Conference on Development and Management of water& energy resources held at Bhubaneshwar in February 2009. The co-authors were Sh Naresh Kumar, Chief Engineer, CWC & Sh Ramesh Sambharia, Dy Director, CWC.
• Technical paper titled “Improving Irrigation Efficiency- Engineering Approach” was authored and presented at the India Water Week held at Delhi in April 2012. The co-author was Sh Sameer Kumar Shukla, Dy Director, CWC.
• Technical paper titled “Command Area Development & Water Management- Government Initiatives” was authored and presented at the First International Conference on Sustainable Water Management held at Chandigarh in December 2018.
• Technical paper titled “Policy Interventions and Institutional Reforms for Sustainable Water Management” was authored and presented the Second International Conference on Sustainable Water Management held at Pune in November 2019. The co-author was Sh K.S. Chaitanya, Dy Director, CWC.
• Technical paper titled “Dam Safety Act & Dam Rehabilitation Programme” was authored and presented the International Dam Safety Conference organised by INCOLD and held at Jaipur in October 2022.
• Technical paper titled “Best Practices on Dam Rehabilitation- Case studies on issues and remedial measures under World Bank aided Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project” was authored and presented the International Conference on Dam Safety held at Jaipur in September 2023. The co-authors were Mr S.S Bakshi, Director, CWC & Mr S. Sharan, Dy Director, CWC.
•  Technical paper titled “Importance of Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) study specially in climate change condition- A case study in Chenab Basin” was authored and presented the International Conference on Dam Safety held at Jaipur in September 2023. The co-authors were Sh Sameer Kumar Shukla, Director, CWC & Sh Ankit Kumar, Dy Director, CWC.
• Technical paper titled “The role of legislation in ensuring dam safety global scenario” was authored and presented in the ICOLD 2024 “International S on Dam for people, water, environment and development” held at Delhi from 29^th September to 3^rd October 2024. The co-authors were Mr S. Sharan, Deputy Director, CWC & Mr Arthur Yapa.

Specialization

• Design and construction Dams, Reservoirs & Irrigation-Drainage networks
• Enhancing Water Use Efficiency and Productivity
• Flood Management
• Irrigation - Development, design & Management
• Participatory Irrigation Management
• Water-Food-Energy Nexus approaches