Dr. Pankaj Gupta

Dr. Pankaj Kumar Gupta

Ramanujan Fellow, ANRF, Govt. of INDIA

Centre for Rural Development and Technology, IIT Delhi

Education

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) Hydrology

Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT)- Roorkee, (2018)

M.Sc. Environmental Sciences

Central University of Rajasthan, (2013)

B.Sc. (Hons) Zoology

Patna Science College, Patna University, (2011)

Experience

Ramanujan Fellow

Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (Aug 2022 to onwards)

Adjunct Assistant Professor

University of Waterloo, Canada (Aug 2022 to onwards)

Postdoctoral Fellow

University of Waterloo, Canada (Jan 2019 to July 2022)

Project Assistant, Centre for Development Communications, Jaipur

Aug 2013 to May 2014

Fellowships

Prestigious Ramanujan Fellowship by ANRF, Govt. of India

Host Institute: Center for Rural Development and Technology, IIT Delhi

National Eligibility Test(NET), Environmental Sciences Fellowship

Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), University Grant Commission (UGC), New Delhi
UGC Ref No-3678/(NET-DEC. 2013)

Agricultural Scientist Recruitment Board (ASRB)-NET 2014, Environmental Sciences

Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi. Ref No. 02309/NET2014(I)

University Merit Scholarship

Central University of Rajasthan

Awards
  • WSCC-2024 Travel Award, GieBen, Germany
  • E-microBiome Project has been awarded as 1st Prize among all technologies presented in the 16th Open House, IIT Delhi. We received Rs 40,000/- cash prize for the same
  • Water Research Award for Rural Development by Bihar Agriculture University, Sabaur, Bihar, India
  • Vaibhav Deoli* received “Young Rural Innovator Award” in GI-YSRI Conference 2023 at NASC Complex, New Delhi held on May 31-June 2, 2023. (*PhD Student)
  • Vaibhav Deoli* received prestigious “Prime Minister Research Fellowship (PMRF)” for his PhD project on “Restoration of Chromium Contaminated Soil-Groundwater Systems at Rania COPR Site, Kanpur Dehat, India”. (*PhD Student)
  • Travel Award - Goldschmidt 2023, Lyon, France
  • Editor's Choice Manuscripts : i) Gupta et al. (2021) ASCE Journal of Environmental Engineering, 147(8), 04021023; ii) Gupta (2020)ASCE Journal of Environmental Engineering, 146(1), 03119001.
  • Third Best Article in IIT Roorkee's Hindi Magazine awarded by IIT Roorkee in September 2018.
  • JpGU Travel Grant Winner (100000 JPY) awarded by JpGU, Japan in May 2018.
  • EXCEED Full Support to Participate in Workshop on “Water Security Assessment” during 26-30 March 2018 at Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand.

  • AGU Student Travel Grant Winner ($1000) awarded by AGU, USA in Dec. 2017.
  • IIT Roorkee International Travel Grant awarded by IIT Roorkee in Dec. 2017.
Memberships
  • विज्ञान भारती (VIBHA)

  • Society for Agriculture and Hydrology Scholar of India (SYAHI)

  • Global Indian Scientist and Technocrats Forum (Vibha)

  • International Association of Hydrological Sciences

  • Japan Geoscience Union

  • American Geophysical Union

  • UK-India Water Centre

  • International Water Resources Association

  • American Society of Civil Engineers

  • International Association for Water, Environment, Energy, and Society (IAWEES)

  • European Association of Geochemistry

Editorial Works
  • Editorial Board Member of Environment & Wev: An International Journal of Science & Technology, SEDINDIA

  • Editorial Board Member of Scientific Reports, Nature

  • Member of Youth Editorial Board of Biochar Journal, Springer

  • Member of Youth Editorial Board of Carbon Research Journal, Springer

  • Review Editor of Water Journal, Frontiers

  • Member of Editorial Board of Discover Applied Sciences Journal, Springer

  • Book Editorship:
    1. Decontamination of Subsurface Water Resources System using Contemporary Technologies Elsevier, USA
    2. Navigating the nexus: hydrology, agriculture, pollution, and climate change Springer Nature Switzerland
    3. Integrated waste management: recent trends, policies, and perspectives CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group
    4. Advances in agri-tech approaches for nutrients and irrigation water management CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group
    5. Linkage of soil-water-agriculture-climate change Springer Nature Switzerland
    6. Advances in remediation techniques for polluted soils and groundwater Elsevier, USA
    7. Fate and Transport of Subsurface Pollutants Springer Nature Singapore
    8. Precision Technologies for Digital Agriculture Elsevier, USA

  • Guest Editor:
    1. Fate, Transport, and Remediation of Hazardous Contaminants in the Soil-Groundwater Systems, CLEAN – Soil, Air, Water
    2. Advances in Agrometeorology and Climatology, Agriculture, MDPI
    3. Looking into the Future of Smart Water Management through Artificial Intelligence, water, MDPI
    4. Remote Sensing for Wildfire Management Potential and Impacts, Fire Ecology, Springer
    5. Exploring the Rise of AI-Based Smart Water Management Systems, AQUA - Water Infrastructure, Ecosystems and Society, IWA
    6. AI-Driven Hydrological Models for Water Resource System” Clean, Wiley
    7. Comprehensive Waste Management with Optimizing Green Technology in Sustainable Environment, Sustainability, MDPI
    8. Sustainable River Ecosystem Management, J. of Hydro informatics, IWA
    9. Integrated System Dynamics Modelling of the Water–Energy–Food–Land–Climate Nexus, Water, MDPI

  • Reviewed 4 Funding Proposals/Sponsored Student Thesis/Research Competition submitted to the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) – a think tank of Govt. of India for planning and policy decisions and the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) – the Government agency and mission that handles one of the largest basins in the world (The Ganga basin)

Committee Works
  • Served as a Session Chair in a session in International Conference on Civil, Environmental, and Applied Sciences (ICCEAS 2025), held on 18th–19th July 2025 at GIET, Baniatangi, Bhubaneswar, Odisha

  • Advisory Committee Member : International Conference on Civil, Environmental and Applied Sciences - 2025

  • Jury Member for the Research Renaissance Event and Wastewater Treatment Case Study at Nirmaan, Civil Conclave 2025, IIT Roorkee.

  • Jury Member, Student Thesis Completion (STC) on “Re-imagining Urban Rivers” by/at NIUA, New Delhi

  • Reviewer and Session Chair at TRACE-2024, Amity University, Noida

  • Member, AGU Water and Society Technical Committee, https://connect.agu.org/hydrology/about/committees/water-and-society

  • National Advisory Committee, icMBT-2024 organized by Microbiological Association for Science and Technology Development (MASTD) Lucknow, India, Glorious Vision University, Nigeria

  • Technical Advisory Committee of HYDRO International: 28th International Conference on Hydraulics, Water Resources, River and Coastal Engineering, NIT Warangal, 21-23 December 2023.

  • Core Organising Team of Global Indian Young Scientist Research and Innovation Conference 2023, May 31 – 2 June, 2023 at NAS Complex, IARI, New Delhi. https://gist-forum.org/GI-YSRIC-2023.

  • Served as a chair in a session on “Earth, Environmental, and Sustinability Sciences” in Global Indian Young Scientist Research and Innovation Conference 2023, held on 31 May 2023-2 June 2023 at NAS Complex, New Delhi, https://gistforum.org/GI-YSRIC-2023

  • Served as a pannalist in a session on “Y20: Role of Youth in Science amd Technology” in Global Indian Young Scientist Research and Innovation Conference 2023, held on 31 May 2023-2 June 2023 at NAS Complex, New Delhi, https://gistforum.org/GI-YSRIC-2023

  • Served as a Judge for- i) EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, and ii) the poster session during the annual (2019) UW World Wetland Day Research Symposium by Ecohydrology Research Group, University of Waterloo.

  • Advisor & Moderator of Agriculture Sessions by GIST at the India International Science Festival, Goa, 10-13 Dec 2021.

  • Invited Guest in Webinar on “Revisiting Flood Management and Irrigation Improvement Prospects in Bihar” Ministry of Water Resources, Govt of Bihar, 6-7 Aug. 2021.

  • Scientific Advisory Committee (International) of International Symposium on Environmental Sustainability (ENVIROSUSTAIN-2021) to be organized by Shoolni University, India during 11-13 Nov. 2021.

  • Scientific Advisory Committee (International) of International Conference on Threats and Challenges to Sustainability of Natural Resources: Contemporary Remedial Tools and Techniques [TCSNR-2021] organized by Department of Soil & Water Conservation Engineering, GBPUA&T Pantnagar during 23-24 Oct. 2021.

  • Technical Review Committee of National Conference on Sustainable and Recent Innovation in Science and Engineering organized by Motihari College of Engineering, Bihar during 28-29 Nov. 2019

  • Convener of AGU Fall Meeting 2019 session on “GH21A – Water Is Life: Understanding Geogenic Groundwater Contamination and Improving Public Health Through Advances in Assessments, Water Quality Modelling, and Water Supply Management-I” during 9-13 Dec. 2019.

  • Convener of AGU Fall Meeting 2019 session on “GH23B – Water Is Life: Understanding Geogenic Groundwater Contamination and Improving Public Health Through Advances in Assessments, Water Quality Modelling, and Water Supply Management III Posters” during 9-13 Dec. 2019. https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm19/meetingapp.cgi/Session/86741

  • Served as a Judge for- i) EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, and ii) the poster session during 2019 annual UW World Wetland Day Research Symposium by Ecohydrology Research Group, University of Waterloo.

  • Advisor & Moderator of Agriculture Sessions by GIST at the India International Science Festival, Goa, 10-13 Dec 2021.

Review Works
  • Environmental Geochemistry and Health Springer

  • Environmental Technology Taylor & Francis

  • Journal of Environmental Management Elsevier

  • Discover Agriculture Springer Nature

  • Environmental Engineering Science AEESP

  • Pedoshere Elsevier

  • Frontiers in Water, section Water and Climate Frontiers

  • Frontiers in Environmental Science Toxicology, Pollution and the Environment Frontiers

  • Frontiers in Water Frontiers

  • Water Resource Management Frontiers

  • Frontiers in Water Environmental Water Quality Frontiers

  • Frontiers in Earth Science Hydrosphere Frontiers

  • Frontiers in Environmental Science Frontiers

  • Frontiers in Plant Science Frontiers

  • Toxicological & Environmental Chemistry Taylor & Francis

  • Water and Environment Journal CIWEM

  • Environmental Claims Taylor & Francis

  • Environmental Earth Sciences Springer

  • PLOS WATER PLOS

  • Separation & Purification Reviews Taylor & Francis

  • Reviews on Environmental Health De Gruyter

  • Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Springer

  • Environmental Science and Pollution Research Springer

  • Biochar Springer

  • Sustainable Water Resources Management Springer

  • Water and Environment Journal Wiley

  • Applied Water Science Springer

  • Ecohydrology Wiley

  • Land Degradation and Development Wiley

  • Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery Springer

  • Bulletin Of Environmental Contamination and ToxicologySpringer

  • Environment Development and Sustainability Springer

  • Environmental Earth Sciences Springer

  • Environmental Sustainability Springer

  • New Journal of Chemistry Royal Soc Chemistry

  • Pollutants MDPI

  • RSC Advances Royal Soc Chemistry

  • Reviews in Environmental Science and Biotechnology Springer

  • SN Applied Sciences Springer

  • Vadose Zone Journal Wiley

  • Water Resources Management Springer

  • Water Air and Soil Pollution Springer

  • Carbon Research Springer Nature

  • Environmental Geology Springer Nature

  • Environmental Science and Pollution Research International Springer Nature

  • Science of The Total Environment Elsevier

  • Journal of Trace Elements and Minerals Elsevier

  • PLOS Global Public Health PLOS

  • ES Energy and Environment ES

  • Natural Hazards Springer

  • Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology Taylor & Francis

  • Mires and Peat MiresPeat.net

  • Arid Land Research and Management Taylor & Francis

  • Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy Springer

  • Environmental Science NANO Royal Soc Chemistry

  • Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology KeAi

Salasar Project-(Explore More)

CDC proposes a 2 years project aiming at ensuring the self sustainability of the desert village of Shri Salasar Balaji whether it is social, environmental or economic and at making it a model for religious centre sustainable management


Research at IIT Delhi

Engineered Microbiome: Simple, Scientific, and Self-Sustainable Engine to Improve Rural Environment

Work Place: Centre for Rural Development and Technology | IIT Delhi
Investigators: Dr. Pankaj Kumar Gupta
Funds: ANRF(Previously SERB)-DST Ramanujan Fellowship to Dr. Pankaj K. Gupta
Cost: Rupees One Crore Nineteen Lakhs Only (~156485 USD)
Duration/Status: 2022-2027/Ongoing
Target Site: Rania-Khan Chandpur villages in the Kanpur Dehat district of Uttar Pradesh
Objective: The project objective is to design the restoration of contaminated sites using an “Engineered Microbiome”

CRDT Foundation Day Video: E-microBiome Project-A contaminated Site Restoration Project

Publications:

Title: Field-Scale Assessment of Soil, Water, Plant and Soil Microbiome in and around Rania-Khan Chandpur Chromium Contaminated Site, India
Journal: Journal of Hazardous Materials, Elsevier (2024)
Author(s): Gupta, P.K., Nair, V., Dalvi, V., Dhali, S., Malik, A., Pant, K.K.
View Publication

Title: Characterization and Mapping of Aquifers using Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) at Rania- Khan Chanpur Chromium Contaminated Site, India
Journal: Journal of Hazardous Materials, Elsevier(2024), (Under internal review)
Author(s): N. L. Suri, Gupta, P.K.

Title: Phytoremediation Design based on Field-Scale Assessment of Chromium Uptake by Crops and Native Plants in and around Rania Khan Chandpur Cr-Contaminated Site, India.
Journal: Journal of Hazardous Materials, Elsevier, (2024) (Under internal review)
Author(s): Afreen, N*., Dhali, S*., Gupta, P.K*., Nair, V., Dalvi, V., Deoli, V., Malik, A., Pant, K.K. (* Author with equal contribution)

Title: Fate, transport, and bioremediation of chromium in soil-groundwater system at Rania-Khan chandpur site, India
Journal: 9-14 July 2023, Goldschmidt, Lyon, France (abstract no. 14179)
Author(s): Gupta, P.K., Nair, V., Dalvi, V., Dhali, S., Malik, A. and Pant, K.K.

Title: Multi-disciplinary approach to understand a Cr contaminated site at Rania-Khan Chandpur, India
Journal: 21-26 May 2023, Japan Geoscience Union Meeting 2023, Chiba, Japan (abstract no. AGE27-P05)
Author(s): Gupta, P.K., Nair, V., Dalvi, V., Dhali, S., Malik, A. and Pant, K.K.
View Publication

Title: Vadose zone chromium distributions in samples collected from Rania-Khan chandpur, Kanpur, India
Journal: 21-26 May 2023, Japan Geoscience Union Meeting 2023, Chiba, Japan (abstract no. AGE27-P03)
Author(s): Deoli, V*., Gupta, P.K., Nair, V., Dalvi, V., Dhali, S., Malik, A. and Pant, K.K.
View Publication (*Oral presentation by PhD Student)

E-microBiome Technology by IIT Delhi


Research at University of Waterloo


Hydrogeological Aspects of Organic Pollutants Management in Peatlands (Bog, Fen, and Swamp Peat Soils)

Research Place: Wetlands Hydrology Research Laboratory | Wetland Ecosystem Terrain System Simulator (WETSyS) Laboratory I University of Waterloo, Canada
Researcher: Pankaj Kumar Gupta, Dr. Behrad Gharedaghloo, Prof. Jonathan Price
Collaborations: Prof. Maria Strack, Dr. Michael DJ Lynch, Dr. Jiujun Cheng, Prof. Trevor Charles
Funds: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Discovery Grant (174626-2013-RGPIN) to Prof. Jonathan Price

Publications:

Title: Multiphase flow behavior of NAPL in bog, fen, and swamp peatlands
Journal: Journal of Contaminant Hydrology (2023)
Author(s): Gupta, P. K., Gharedaghloo, B., and Price, J. S.
View Publication

Title: Understanding hydrocarbon fate and transport in peat soils using column experiments
Journal: EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-10924
Author(s): Gupta, P. K., Gharedaghloo, B., and Price, J. S.
View Publication

Title: Hydrogeological aspects of petroleum hydrocarbon spills management in peatlands
Journal: American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2020, abstract #H031-0004 (2021)
Author(s): Gupta, P. K., Gharedaghloo, B., and Price, J. S.
View Publication

Title: Dynamics of microbial populations and diversity in NAPL contaminated peat soil under varying water table conditions
Journal: Environmental Research (2020)
Author(s): Gupta, P. K., Gharedaghloo, B., Lynch, M., Cheng, J., Strack, M., Charles, T. C., and Price, J. S.

Investigating Constructed Fen Methane Cycling Microbial Community

Research Place: Wetlands Hydrology Research Laboratory | Wetland Ecosystem Terrain System Simulator (WETSyS) Laboratory I University of Waterloo, Canada
Researchers: Pankaj Kumar Gupta, Prof. Maria Strack, Prof. Jonathan Price
Funds: NSERC CRD to Prof. Price, Prof Strack

Publications:

Title: Microbiome of 9 Years constructed fen
Journal: Science of the Total Environment (In preparation)
Author(s): Gupta, P. K., Strack, M., and Price, J. S.

Investigating Wildfire Peat Soil Microbiome

Research Place: Wetlands Hydrology Research Laboratory | Wetland Ecosystem Terrain System Simulator (WETSyS) Laboratory I University of Waterloo, Canada
Researchers: Abigail Shingler, Pankaj Kumar Gupta, Prof. Maria Strack, Prof. Jonathan Price

University of Waterloo University of Waterloo


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Research at IIT Roorkee

Multi-Scale Fate and Transport of Light Non-Aqueous Phase Liquids (Organic Pollutants) Under Varying Subsurface Conditions (Shallow Aquifers/Mineral Soils)

Research Place: Groundwater Hydrology Laboratory, IIT Roorkee
Researchers: Pankaj Kumar Gupta, Prof. Brijesh Kumar Yadav
Collaborations: Prof. Piet Lens, Prof. J.J.A. van Bruggen, Dr. H.I. Mustapha (Deceased), Prof. Shashi Mathur, Dr. B. Yadav, Dr. S. Basu, Prof. S. Sushkova
Funds: SERB-DST Ramanujan Fellowship to Prof. Yadav and UGC JRF/SRF (2014-2018) to Dr. Gupta.

Publications:

Title: Temporal moment-based approach to understand the dissolved-phase LNAPL recovery and associated characteristics in the porous system under dynamic groundwater table conditions
Journal: AQUA – Water Infrastructure, Ecosystems and Society (2023)
Author(s): Guleria, A., Gupta, P.K., Chakma, S., Yadav, B.K.
View Publication

Title: Thermally Enhanced Bioremediation of Hydrocarbon Polluted Soils
Journal: Pollutants (2021)
Author(s): Yadav, B.K., and Gupta, P.K.
View Publication

Title: Engineered bioremediation of NAPL polluted sites: Experimental and simulation-optimization approach under heterogeneous moisture and temperature conditions
Journal: Journal of Environmental Engineering (2021)
Author(s): Gupta, P. K., Yadav, B., Yadav, B. K., Sushkova, S., and Basu, S.

Title: In situ bioremediation of LNAPL polluted vadose zone: Integrated column and wetland study
Journal: CLEAN – Soil, Air, Water (2020)
Author(s): Basu, S., Yadav, B.K., Mathur, S., and Gupta, P.K.

Title: Three-dimensional laboratory experiments on fate and transport of LNAPL under varying groundwater flow conditions
Journal: Journal of Environmental Engineering (2020)
Author(s): Gupta, P. K., and Yadav, B. K.

Title: Assessment of LNAPL in subsurface under fluctuating groundwater table using 2D sand tank experiments
Journal: Journal of Environmental Engineering (2019)
Author(s): Gupta, P. K., Yadav, B., and Yadav, B. K.

Title: Performance evaluation of duplexconstructed wetlands for the treatment of diesel contaminated wastewater
Journal: Chemosphere (2018) 205, 166-177
Author(s): Mustapha, H. I., Gupta, P. K., Yadav, B. K., van Bruggen, J. J. A., and Lens, P. N. L.



Data avaiblable for further research:

a) Toluene dissolution rates under each magnitude of 4 water table fluctuations in the 2D sand tank
b) Toluene dissolution rates under 3 water table flow rates in the 3D sand tank
c) Vadose zone air-phase toluene concentrations with time in 2D/3D sand tanks
d) Relative concentrations/Toluene degradation rates for plant and un-planted wetlands
e) Relative toluene concentrations under varying soil moistures (100-60% of theta S) and temperatures
f) Relative concentrations of tracer in 2D and 3D sand tanks

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Mentorship


Mr. Shibaraj Brahma Gayari

Main Supervisor : Prof. Sumedha Chakma, Dept. of Civil Engineering & Co-Supervisor : Dr. Pankaj K. Gupta, CRDT
PhD Research Title : Fate and Transport of Cadmium in the Subsurface

Interns and Project Staffs

  1. Amrendar Kumar Gupta - Consultancy and Ramanujan Fellowship Project Site Management
  2. Annie Arya Roy - Analysis of PFAS in Soil and Water (Jointly with Dr. Bhupender Singh, CRF IIT Delhi)
  3. Naziya Afreen – Bioremediation of Cr-Contaminated Groundwater Collected from Rania-Khan Chandpur site.
  4. Tarun Bhagwani – Synergistic algae sludge co-cultivaiton for enhanced wastewater treatment (Dr. Vivek Dalvi, FITT & CFix)
  5. Baby Sonal – Department of Remote Sensing, BIT Mesra, Ranchi
  6. Suparna Ghosh – Department of Remote Sensing, BIT Mesra, Ranchi
  7. Purnima Chauhan – Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Amity University, Madhya Pradesh (Jointly with Dr. Vivek Dalvi, FITT- IIT DELHI)
  8. Tanya Tomar – Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Amity University, Madhya Pradesh (Jointly with Dr. Vivek Dalvi, FITT- IIT DELHI)