School of Systems and Infrastructure

The School of Systems and Infrastructure is particularly identified with the ‘spatial and physical/material terrain’ of urban research and practice including its social, economic and political dimensions. Cities consist of various overlapping systems, such as mobility, water, sanitation, solid waste management, energy, food and land. These systems are the central concern of the School.

 

Within the proposed degrees at IIHS IOE, the School will be the core location for the Concentrations on Planning, Housing, Infrastructure, and Urban Design. It is also envisaged that specialised Concentrations in each of the infrastructure systems will be offered separately, including mobility, energy, and environmental services.

Key focus areas

Settlement Planning

Energy

Environmental Services

Urban Transportation and Mobility

People 

Projects

Research

Practice

Capacity Building

Urban Water Supply and Sanitation: Urban Water Supply and Sanitation: The UPP leverages its internal and external faculty and practitioner network in the area of water supply and sanitation to deliver cutting edge programmes on universal coverage and programme management. Apart from conducting lectures and sessions in audio-visual formats on water supply, sanitation and septage management, UPP conducts visits to several sites of best practices to enable experiential learning for the participants. The modules are conducted as part of the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) individual integrated capacity building programme, as well as specialised workshops for HUDCO, covering understanding of urban sanitation systems, and their planning, implementation and maintenance.

 

Storm Water Management: The UPP addresses the issue of urban flooding and its prevention taking both a planning and infrastructure approach, in which adequate stress in laid on optimal spatial planning of urban areas accounting for natural drainage systems, as well as the creation and utilisation of green infrastructure, besides well-designed networks for storm water drainage. Specialised courses are conducted on this topic as part of the integrated capacity building programme under the AMRUT mission.

 

Solid Waste Management: Best practices in Municipal Solid Waste Management including segregation at source, safe disposal, recycling and reuse, and case studies from around the world form part of UPP’s specialised modules on Solid Waste Management. These courses complemented by site visits to demonstrate the importance of efficient municipal solid waste management, are delivered under the AMRUT integrated capacity building programme. The aims and objectives of the Swachh Bharat Mission are also covered as part of these modules.

 

Urban Mobility: As part of the integrated capacity building programme under the AMRUT mission, as well as for other interested urban practitioners, UPP conducts specialised modules on public transport and non-motorised transport focussing on design, equity, access and safety.

 

Urban Green Spaces: UPP conducts specialised modules on urban green spaces, which are intended to improve the liveability and amenity value of urban areas, with a special focus on children and senior citizens with regard to planning and spatial design. These are delivered as part of the integrated capacity building programme under the AMRUT mission.

 

In each of these themes, our course offerings combine an overview of the governance and policy framework, and current practice to arrive at an understanding of the prevalent situation. Participants are encouraged to employ a systems thinking approach both to formulate alternative governance and policy frameworks, and to find solutions to address gaps between policies and practice and propose ways to achieve the desired outcomes as need be.