The Ministry of Rural Development has signed a MoU with the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi to formalise their partnership in applications of geospatial technology and artificial intelligence, as per the official announcement.
The MoU was signed by Amit Kataria, joint secretary, MoRD and Manabendra Saharia, IIT Delhi. Secretary, MoRD Shailesh Kumar Singh and director, IIT Delhi Rangan Banerjee were also present on the occasion.
The MoU centred around the project “BhuPRAHARI,” an initiative aimed at leveraging ground and space-based geospatial technologies along with Artificial Intelligence to monitor and manage assets under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), as mentioned in the statement.
The project is to be executed by the HydroSense lab led by Manabendra Saharia. This collaboration is expected to harness the power of technology for the betterment of rural development processes.
Officials further said that through this partnership, IIT Delhi and MoRD are setting a precedent for how academic institutions and government bodies can work together to foster innovation and drive socio-economic progress. The BhuPRAHARI project is set to commence with immediate effect, with both parties eager to translate this vision into reality.