How a Student Workshop in Gujarat Catalyzed a Research Effort to Save India’s Water Pathways

February 05, 2026

When the monsoon arrives in Bengaluru, it makes contradictions impossible to ignore. Streets flood while borewells run dry; lakes overflow, yet neighborhoods rely on private water tankers. These crises are often treated as isolated engineering failures, but a journey that began in a design studio provides a scalable blueprint for Indian cities to achieve long-term resilience by designing with nature rather than against it.

The Genesis: Observation Over Solutions

The journey began in a summer workshop in Ahmedabad organized by the Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP), led by adjunct associate professors Sandro Marpillero and Sonal Beri. The studio’s core philosophy was "Watershed Urbanism"—the idea that urban design must start with the natural flow of water rather than property lines. The focus was not on providing solutions, but on mapping the invisible pathways of water.

Students traced the "historical water-oriented architecture" of Gujarat, documenting how ancient settlements were strategically organized around subtle variations in topography. In the semi-arid landscape of Ahmedabad, they discovered a sophisticated system of stepwells and interconnected wetlands. These were not just monuments; they were functional infrastructure where wetlands acted as natural filters, ensuring the cleanliness of water recharging the aquifers below. By "walking the city" and its rural peripheries, students saw how this "ancient wisdom" supported local economies—and how modern real-estate models, characterized by tower clusters and fragmented planning, were beginning to suffocate these vital systems.

Bengaluru: Identifying the "Red Flag"

This methodology of tracing natural flows moved to Bengaluru through a Columbia World Projects Social Impact Seed Grant. Shifting from the semi-arid plains of Gujarat to the ridged topography of the Deccan Plateau, the research team identified a critical disconnect. Bengaluru is literally split in half by a watershed divide: the Kaveri basin to the west and the Pennar to the east.

Focusing on the Hebbal Valley, the team identified a "Red Flag" in the city’s peri-urban regions. As the city expands toward the airport, it is importing colonial "Garden City" models that ignore the terrain. By building over natural drainage lines (raja kaluves) or lining them with concrete, the city is destroying its own "hydrological apertures." These concretized channels stop water from percolating into the ground, turning life-giving rain into destructive floods.

A National Framework for Resilience

The true value of this work lies in its potential as a national framework. The researchers advocate for a shift toward "Watershed Urbanism"—an approach that prioritizes nature-based solutions over hard engineering, particularly in the growing edges of India's cities.

Key benefits of integrating this framework into national planning include:

  • Preserving Peri-Urban Pathways: Instead of allowing the "concretization" of outskirts, planners can designate drainage channels as Blue-Green Corridors. This prevents flooding in new developments and protects future groundwater supplies.
  • Micro-Watershed Management: Replicating the Ahmedabad model of "integrated wetlands," the framework suggests placing small-scale Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) within lake command areas. This treats urban runoff naturally before it reaches the water table.
  • Decentralized Infrastructure: By treating water as a "commons" rather than a utility, cities can use check dams and percolation pits to recharge aquifers locally, reducing the crippling dependence on expensive, long-distance water tankers.

Moving Beyond the Campus

To influence policy,  the faculty presented their findings to the urban planners and municipal commissioners working with the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA).  They demonstrated that watershed boundaries offer a natural planning lens that bridges the gap between urban design, ecology, and community engagement.

What began as a mapping exercise in Ahmedabad has evolved into a call for a fundamental shift in Indian governance. It suggests that long-term resilience does not come from fighting the monsoon, but from designing cities that allow water to follow its natural path.

Watch more videos: 

Agriculture, Water & Ritual : https://vimeo.com/1127230092?fl=ip&fe=ec
Ecology & Environment : https://vimeo.com/1127232348?fl=ip&fe=ec