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International Seminar “GEOSYNTHETICS INDIA’08” and “INTRODUCTORY COURSE ON GEOSYNTHETICS”, 19-21 November 2008, Hyderabad
To be abreast with the latest development in the field of Geosynthetics, an International Seminar “Geosynthetics India’08”, including “An Introductory Course on Geosynthetics” was organised by the Indian Chapter of International Geosynthetics Society and the Central Board of Irrigation & Power (CBIP) at Hyderabad (India) at Hotel Golkonda during 19-21 November 2008.
The event was attended by 98 engineers/professionals from various parts of the country and from Israel, Thailand and USA. The event was sponsored by Garware Wall-Ropes Ltd., GSE Lining Technology Co. Ltd., NAUE GmbH & Co. KG and PRS Mediterranean Ltd. The organisations like GSE Lining Technology Co. Ltd., International Marketing Services, NAUE GmbH & Co. KG, PRS Mediterranean Ltd; Israel, Techfab (India) Industries Ltd. and TRI/Environmental, Inc., USA, exhibited their products/services during the event.
Following topics were covered during the Introductory Course on Geosynthetics, which was inaugurated by Mr. S. Jaswant Kumar, Chief Engineer, Roads & Building Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh:
- Geosynthetics - Types, Manufacturing, Materials and Functions - Dr. G. Venkatappa Rao; President; Indian Chapter of IGS,
- Geosynthetics - Testing - Dr. A.R. Katti; Principal; Data Meghe College of Engineering
- Geosynthetic Reinforced Soil Structures - Mr. M. Venkataraman; Advisor; Geosynthetics Division; Garware Wall Ropes Ltd
- Geosynthetics in Landfills - Mr. M. Venkataraman; Advisor; Geosynthetics Division; Garware Wall Ropes Ltd
- Geosynthetics in Pavements - Dr. G. Venkatappa Rao; President; Indian Chapter of IGS
- Geosynthetics in Erosion Control - Mr. C.R. Devaraj; Managing Director; Charankattu Coir Mfg. Co. (P) Ltd.
The Seminar was inaugurated by Dr. K.S. Jawahar Reddy ( IAS); Metropolitan Commissioner; Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority on 20th November 2008. The inaugural session was presided over by Mr. I.S.N. Raju; Chief Engineer (CDO); Irrigation & CAD Department; Government of Andhra Pradesh.
Following two publications were released by Dr. K.S. Jawahar Reddy during the inaugural session:
- Directory of Geosynthetics in India
- Geosynthetics Testing – A Laboratory Manual (authored by Dr. G. Venkatappa Rao and Dr. Goutam K. Pothal)
Lectures on the following topics, besides the case studies were presented during the seminar, by Dr. G.V. Rao, Dr. A.R. Katti, Dr. Goutam K. Pothal, besides eminent professionals from Ahmedabad Textile Industry's Research Association, Central Road Research Institute, Coir Board, Garware Wall-Ropes Ltd., GSE Lining Technology Co. Ltd. (Thailand), Indian Jute Industries’ Research Association, Maccaferri Environmental Solutions Pvt. Ltd., National Institute of Research on Jute & Allied Fibre Technology, PRS Mediterranean Ltd. (Israel), Roads & Buildings Department; Government of Andhra Pradesh, Sohams Foundation Engg. Pvt. Ltd., Techfab (India) Industries Ltd., TRI/Environmental, Inc. (USA), Vector Engineering , Inc. (USA), Z-Tech (India) Private Ltd.
- Geoenvironmental Applications of Geosynthetics
- Design of Geo-Strip Reinforced Soil System
- New Uses of Coir Geotextiles
- The Quality Assurance of Geosynthetics and Its Implications for Developing Economies
- Reinforced Soil Wall
- Use of Prefabricated Vertical Drains (PVD) for Ground Improvement Application
- Geogrid Reinforced Soil Walls with Welded Wire Mesh facing to Retain the Approaches to a Flyover
- Design and Construction of the Bena Landfill, Kern County, California, USA
- Design and Development of Secured Landfill Facility
- Geosynthetics for Lining System and Reinforced Slope for Landfills
- Behaviour of Geosynthetic Reinforced Pond Ash Overlain by WMM
- Field Studies on Geotextile Usage for Road Construction - CRRI Experience
- Geosynthetics in Hydraulic Structures
- Application of Impervious Geomembrane to Control Seepage in Dams and Improve Long Time Behaviour
- Three Dimensional Cellular Confinement System Contribution to Structural Pavement Reinforcement
- Impervious HDPE Geomembrane for Liquid Containments
- Slope Stabilisation with Jute Geotextiles - Two Case Studies
- Geo-Jute for Rural Road Construction
The event concluded with the panel discussions headed by Dr. G.V. Rao. The other panelists were Dr. G.V.S. Suryanarayana Raju; Chief Engineer (NABARD); Roads & Buildings Department; Government of Andhra Pradesh and Mr. A.C. Gupta, Treasurer, Indian Chapter of IGS and Director (Water Resources), CBIP.
7 th International R&D Conference, 4-6 February 2009, Bhubaneswar, Orissa
During the 7th International R&D Conference, held in Bhubaneswar (Orissa) during 4-6 February 2009, there was a Special Session on “Applications of Geosynthetics in Water Resources Projects”, was organised to promote the activities of IGS in India. The session was chaired by Dr. G.V. Rao, President, International Geosynthetics Society (India), who also gave a keynote presentation on “Geosynthetics Applications in Water Resources Projects”. The conference was attended by over 500 delegates from all parts of India. Besides the keynote address, papers on the following topics were also presented and discussed during the session:
- Testing and Evaluation of Geosynthetics Products
- Application of Geosynthetics and Hexagonal Mesh Products in River Training and Coastal Protection Works
- First Geomembrane Installation in a Hydropower Canal in India
Directory of Geosynthetics in India - 2008
A need for an updated Directory of Geosynthetics giving comprehensive information about the manufacturers, suppliers and testing facilities, etc., was being felt for quite a sometime to fulfill the needs of all stake holders in view of the growing use of these materials in civil engineering applications. International Geosynthetics Society (India) has earlier brought out two volumes of the directory published in the year 1994 and 1997.
Many organizations involved in the field of Geosynthetics which could not find place in previous volumes due to lack of information, have been included in this updated “Directory of Geosynthetics”.
The directory is available free to the members of International Geosynthetics Society (India).
Geosynthetics Testing – A Laboratory Manual
With increasing use of geosynthetics in India and the confidence with which they are being used shows that these materials really perform the tasks they are assigned. Geosynthetics are well developed and are of great value in enhancing the performance of traditional materials.
In view of the fact that geosynthetics are still “modern civil engineering construction materials” in India, their testing and evaluation as per relevant standard is a must. The quality control tests must be possible for conducting quickly, efficiently and regularly during production. On the other hand the tests to assess suitability for functional requirements will necessarily be detailed and are likely to be time-consuming and expensive. Though work has begun as early as 1987 to fabricate/develop test equipment in an attempt to understand the various aspects of the engineering behaviour of Geosynthetics, yet there is no good manual available on Geosynthetics testing. Always a need was felt to have our own code of practice, guidelines for testing of geosynthetic material and its quality etc.
This manual on “Geosynthetics Testing” which has been prepared by Dr. G.V. Rao and Dr. Goutam K. Pothal will be of immense help to all those who are concerned with the use of Geosynthetics and will enable engineers to make effective and confident use of geosynthetics in conjunction with natural materials.
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