The third day carried the 9^th India International Water Week 2026 deeper into its technical programme, into the forward-looking questions of climate risk, early warning, glacial lake monitoring, water pricing and the financing of resilient water infrastructure. Sessions ran in parallel across the Water Leaders’ Forum, Country Forum, Practitioners’ Forum, Thematic Forum and Start-Up Forum. The Thematic Forum closed the third of its seven sub-themes and moved through the fourth and fifth.

The day also widened the Week’s international reach. The Start-Up Forum gave startups, MSMEs and academia a platform to pitch problem-driven water solutions. On the sidelines, a bilateral meeting advanced India-Netherlands cooperation, with two tripartite MoUs signed.

India-Netherlands Bilateral Meeting

On the sidelines of the 9^th India International Water Week-2026, a bilateral meeting between the Shri C R Patil, Minister of Jal Shakti and H.E. Mr. Jaap Slootmaker, Vice Minister for Infrastructure and Water Management, Netherlands, was held at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi. Shri Raj Bhushan Choudhary, Minister of State, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Shri Ishwarsinh Patel, Minister of State for Water Resources and Water Supply (Independent Charge), joined the meeting, along with H. E Marissa Gerard, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to India.

During the event, a tripartite MoU was signed between Central Water Commission, Kalpasar, Deptt. Govt. of Gujarat and Deltares, Netherlands for technical support. Another tripartite MoU was signed between CWC, Kalpasar Deptt. of Govt. of Gujarat and TU Delft Netherlands for capacity building and trainings. The MoUs will facilitate technical collaboration through sharing of Dutch expertise and advanced engineering practices for the planning, design and implementation of the project.

Country Forum (CF)

CF-4 on Private Capital Mobilisation in the Water Sector, convened with the World Bank, was chaired by Shri Baldeo Purushartha, Joint Secretary, DEA, GOI and co-chaired by Smt. Roshika Singh, Principal Country Officer, IFC India. The session opened with a keynote by Shri Saroj Kumar Jha, Global Water Director, World Bank, and was moderated by Mr. William Rex, Practice Manager for Water, World Bank, with Jain Irrigations, IFC India, Coca-Cola,VA Tech Wabag, Tata Capital, the Maharashtra Institution for Transformation (MITRA) and the Uttar Pradesh State Transformation Commission, on the reforms and financing mechanisms needed to unlock private investment in urban water, wastewater and irrigation.

Water Leaders’ Forum (WLF)

WLF-3 on Improving Water Use Efficiency Using State-of-the-Art Technology in the Water Resources Sector, convened with the CII Water Institute, was chaired by P. C. Vyas, Principal Secretary, (Water Resources) Government of Gujarat, and co-chaired by Smt. Shilpa Nischal, Executive Director, CII Water Institute, with Grundfos, Murugappa Water Technology, Ion Exchange, Kritsnam Technologies and NITI Aayog, on smart metering, monitoring and technology for water-use efficiency.

WLF-4 on Climate Risk Assessment for Water Security, convened with the National Institute of Hydrology, Roorkee, was chaired by Prof. Nagesh Kumar, Professor, IISc Bangalore, and co-chaired by Dr. Y. R. S. Rao, Director, NIH Roorkee, with ICHARM (Japan), IIT Bombay, IISc Bangalore, CWC and IIT Delhi, on integrating climate risk assessment into water governance and planning frameworks.

WLF-5 on Embedding Climate Action in Water Governance and Policies, convened with CEEW, was chaired by Shri Jogindra Singh IAS, Project Director, State Mission for Clean Ganga, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh, and co-chaired by Ms. Noa Amsalem, Water Attache, Embassy of Israel, with IIT Guwahati, WELL Labs Bengaluru, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Google, Council on Energy, Environment and Water and DCM Shriram, on shifting from managing climate risk to building resilience through governance reform.

WLF-6 on Climate-Resilient Adaptation Measures in Water Resources, convened with the National Dam Safety Authority was chaired by Shri Rakesh Kashyap, Chairman, National Dam Safety Authority and co-chaired by Shri Manoj Kumar Acharya, Former Chief Engineer, BODHI, Madhya Pradesh Water Resources Department, with IIT Delhi, HCL Foundation, IMD, GIZ and NDMA, addressed hydrological modelling for dams under a changing climate, glacial lake outburst floods, and the structural rehabilitation of earthen and rockfill dams, drawing on international financing experience for climate-resilient dam infrastructure.

Practitioners’ Forum (PF)

PF-5 on Session on Best Practices, convened with the National Water Mission, was chaired by Shri Rajesh Toppo, Secretary, Water Resources, Government of Chhattisgarh, and co-chaired by Shri Atul Jain, Former Chairman, Central Water Commission, with district collectors and municipal commissioners from Tripura, Telangana and Surat; and Himalayan Environmental Studies and Conservation Organization, Ministry of Rural Development and The Rainwater Project, on integrating global best practices with the Ministry of Jal Shakti’s efforts; the Jal Jeevan Mission now reports about 81.5% of rural households with tap water connections.

PF-6 on Water Disputes and Resolution, was chaired by Dr. Srinivas Chokkakula, President and Chief Executive, Centre for Policy Research and co-chaired by Shri P. Dorje Gyamba, Chairman, Godavari River Management Board, with the CWC, Supreme Court advocates, the National Water Academy, Pune, and river-basin management board representatives, examined Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanisms and the proposed Disputes Resolution Committee under the Inter-State River Water Disputes framework.

PF-7 on Jal-Sanskriti and HARIT Pathways: India’s Water Heritage for a Resilient Future, was chaired by Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, Padma Vibhushan, Former Union Minister, Ministry of Human Resource Development, on connecting India’s traditional water culture, its sacred rivers, temple tanks and stepwells, with modern, climate-resilient water management, and on carrying that heritage into community-led conservation.