Insight for Cities (I4C)
Insight for Cities (I4C) is the Centre’s research initiative designed to connect academic expertise, urban challenges, and implementation partners to develop practical, evidence-based solutions for Indian cities. Launched through an open call for research, the initiative received 22 research proposals across 8 thematic domains, which underwent a rigorous two-stage evaluation process comprising expert technical review and proposal presentation. Each proposal was reviewed by a minimum of three experts, with reviewers drawn from 13+ nationally recognised academic and research institutions and industry organisations.
Following the evaluation, 16 projects were selected for a two-year implementation period, with at least one project awarded in each thematic domain. The selected portfolio covers Smart Urban Mobility (4 projects), Municipal Fiscal Health (1), Disaster Management & Climate Resilience (3), Urban Governance & Safety (1), Sustainable Waste Management (3), AI & Digital Twin Systems (1), Geothermal Energy (1), and Resilient Urban Systems (1). With 16 implementing partners and a total funding requirement of approximately ₹4.75 crore, I4C establishes a collaborative platform for translating research and innovation into actionable solutions for urban planning, governance, resilience, mobility, and sustainable development.
Smart Urban Mobility
| S.No. |
Title of the Project |
ULB / Institutional Partner |
PI |
| 1 |
Construction of Season-Specific Representative Driving Cycles and Development of an Intelligent Driver Monitoring and Assistance System for Sustainable Smart Urban Mobility: A Case Study of Electric Bus Transit in Kochi City |
Kochi Metro Rail Limited |
Dr. Nishant Mukund Pawar |
| 2 |
A Queue-Preserving Digital Dispatch Platform for Auto-Rickshaw Stands in Kerala, with a Regionally Adaptive Framework for Tourism-Dependent and Union-Governed Transport Ecosystems |
Chathamangalam Panchayat |
Dr. Anil Kumar P P |
| 3 |
Development of an Intelligent Traffic Management and Mobility Analytics Platform for Smart Urban Governance |
Kozhikode City Police, Kerala Police |
Dr. Shihabudheen K V |
| 4 |
Interpretable automated distress evaluation to facilitate maintenance decisions for urban road network |
LSGD |
Dr. Hillol Chakravarty |
Municipal Fiscal Health
| S.No. |
Title of the Project |
ULB / Institutional Partner |
PI |
| 1 |
Land-Based Municipal Finance for Kerala: Monetizing Planning and Land Value Instruments to Strengthen ULBs for Urban Challenge Fund Readiness |
Department of Town and Country Planning; Kerala Institute of Local Administration |
Dr. Mohammed Firoz C |
Disaster Management & Climate Resilience
| S.No. |
Title of the Project |
ULB / Institutional Partner |
PI |
| 1 |
VISHRAM — Visakhapatnam Integrated System for Heat-Risk Assessment and Monitoring |
Sustainability and Resilience Unit, GVMC |
Kuladeep Kumar Sadevi |
| 2 |
ML based decision support system for multi hazard risk assessment and disaster response planning — landslide and flooding, Wayanad |
Mananthavady Municipality |
Dr. Shyni Anilkumar |
| 3 |
Anthropogenic heat from air conditioning and street level thermal stress: field validated microclimate modelling and mitigation strategies |
Delhi Development Authority |
Dr. Naseer M A |
Urban Governance & Safety
| S.No. |
Title of the Project |
ULB / Institutional Partner |
PI |
| 1 |
HarnessGov: Engineering trustworthy AI agent harness for ward level urban governance |
Hazaribagh Municipal Corporation |
Dr. Jay Prakash |
| 2 |
AI enabled urban structural safety assessment and resilience framework for public buildings |
Local infrastructure development and engineering wing |
Dr. Ranjith K |
Sustainable Waste Management
| S.No. |
Title of the Project |
ULB / Institutional Partner |
PI |
| 1 |
Development of a concentrated solar thermal valorisation system for net negative Carbon material production from residual waste |
Mananthavady Municipality |
Dr. Shijo Thomas |
| 2 |
Waste to worth: Valorization of demolition C&D waste for urban furniture applications |
Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation |
Dr. A Manoj |
| 3 |
Operational framework for non biodegradable waste management in Kozhikode municipal corporation |
Kozhikode Municipal Corporation |
Amritha P K |
AI & Digital Twin Systems
| S.No. |
Title of the Project |
ULB / Institutional Partner |
PI |
| 1 |
Digital Twin model for Climate-Resilience Assessment of Drainage, Natural Drain Pathways, Canals, Private Plots and Flood-Prone Areas in Cherthala Municipality |
Cherthala Municipality |
Dr. Sanil Kumar |
Geothermal Energy
| S.No. |
Title of the Project |
ULB / Institutional Partner |
PI |
| 1 |
Thermal comfort enhancement using ground coupled cooling systems in hot humid urban buildings |
Mukkam Municipality / General Engineering and Health Section |
Dr. Gangadhara Kiran Kumar Lachireddi |
Resilient Urban Systems
| S.No. |
Title of the Project |
ULB / Institutional Partner |
PI |
| 1 |
Maharashtra Resilient and Climate-Adaptive Urban Water Planning: Historical Assessment, Future Projections (2030, 2045 and 2060) and Strategic Roadmap for Water Supply, Wastewater Management and Integrated Urban Water Balance across Urban Local Bodies |
Maharashtra Institution for Transformation (MITRA) |
Dr. Resmi S R |