Dr. Arun Kumar Dwivedi

I was born on October 2, 1963, in a small village located in Madhya Pradesh, India. My early education took place in the modest villages of the Shahdol and Satna districts of Madhya Pradesh, where my father served as the headmaster of a junior school. He inspired me to succeed in the "Gramin Pratibhavan Pareeksha" in 1975, which subsequently allowed me to gain admission to the Model Multipurpose Higher Secondary School in Rewa, a distinguished institution of that time. I completed my secondary education there from 1975 to 1978. Upon finishing my schooling, I enrolled in the first year of a diploma program at the Government Polytechnic in Nowgong, District Chhatarpur, MP, in June 1978. In August 1979, I returned to Rewa to pursue a five-year degree program in civil engineering at the Government Engineering College, Rewa, from 1979 to 1984. After obtaining my degree, I began my professional career at JST Engineering Services, with an office in Angul, Dhenkanal, Orissa, where I worked for a year in 1984-85. My responsibilities included supervising the erection of steel structures and the installation of cooling water and auxiliary cooling water piping for the thermal power plant of the National Aluminum Company (NALCO). In 1985, I chose to pursue a career in academia and joined SSVPS College of Engineering in Dhule, Maharashtra, a self-financed institute affiliated to university of Pune, on July 27, 1985. I completed my postgraduate studies with a specialization in Water Resources Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Powai, Mumbai, between 1988 and 1990. I served at SSVPS College of Engineering, Dhule, until October 31, 2013, holding various positions including Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Dean of Academic Administration, Professor, and Head of the Civil Engineering Department. In 2007, I commenced my research under the guidance of Dr. Sudhir Singh Bhadauria and submitted my thesis in 2011 to Rajiv Gandhi Proudigiki Vishwavidyalaya (RGPV), where I was awarded a Ph.D. degree in 2012. It was a moment of great pride for me to receive my Ph.D. from the esteemed hands of Hon'ble Shri Pranab Mukherjee, the President of India, during the 8th convocation of RGPV. I completed 16 weeks of STTP/Refresher courses, primarily from IITs and other esteemed technical institutions. I hold a life fellow membership with the IWRS and IWWA, as well as life memberships in ISTE, IE(I), IASWC, IAH, ISH, ISWM, and WSSCC. Throughout my tenure at SSVPS College of Engineering in Dhule, Maharashtra, I was consistently involved in administrative roles. However, I chose to take on a leadership position and relocated to Nashik, where I assumed the role of Principal at K.V.N. Naik Shikshan Prasarak Sanstha's Institute of Engineering Education & Research, serving from November 1, 2013, to September 28, 2017. On September 29, 2017, I joined Sandip University in Nashik as a Professor in Civil Engineering. During my time there, I have had the privilege of serving as Dean of Engineering, Dean of Academics, and I currently hold the position of Director of the Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC). Sandip University, founded in 2016, is a self-financed educational institution that has received recognition from the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the Government of Maharashtra in accordance with sections 2(f) and 12(B). I have been instrumental in facilitating the UGC visits that led to the conferment of 2(f) and 12(B) status to Sandip University in the years 2018 and 2020, respectively. I have served as the Chancellor's nominee for the Building Works Committee at North Maharashtra University in Jalgaon, Maharashtra. I have received three awards in recognition of my contributions to water supply and research. It is a privilege to be associated with the National Accreditation and Assessment Council in Bengaluru as a member of the assessor panel. I have published over 100+ articles in various journals and conference proceedings, both as a primary and as co-author alongside my colleagues and postgraduate and doctoral students. I was awarded a project valued at ₹25.00 lakh by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. Additionally, I have prepared the Detailed Engineering Project Report (DEPR) for Rural Water Supply Systems, with a total project cost exceeding ₹37 crores, and served as Project Management Consultant for projects worth over ₹2.5 crores. I have guided 275+ undergraduate students and 75+ postgraduate students, and I have supervised eight doctoral candidates. Currently, six students are pursuing their Ph.D. research under my guidance. I have filed or published three patents and one copyright related to my doctoral research. I am currently associated with Sandip University, Nashik, as a Senior Professor and Director IQAC following my superannuation in October 2023.