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Asit K. Biswas

Distinguished Visiting Professor, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore

Prof. Asit K. Biswas is universally acknowledged as one of the world’s leading authorities on water and environmental management. He is co-founder of the Third World Centre for Water Management in Mexico and currently the Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School for Public Policy in Singapore. Formerly Professor in UK, Canada and Sweden, he was member of the World Commission on Water, and a founder of the International Water Resources Association and World Water Council. He has been senior advisor to 20 governments, six Heads of United Nations Agencies, two Secretary-Generals of OECD, and many other major international and national organizations. He is Past President of the International Water Resources Association and is founder and co-chair of the Club of Tokyo.

Among his numerous awards are Crystal Drop and Millennium Prizes of the International Water Resources Association; Walter Huber Prize of the American Society of Civil Engineering. He received the Stockholm Water Prize, considered to be the Nobel Prize for area of water, for ‘his outstanding and multi-faceted contributions to global water resource issues;’ Person of the Year Award from Prime Minister Harper of Canada; Aragon Environment Prize of Spain; ‘Excellence Award for Achievements’ from New Global Indian Foundation; ‘Hind Rattan Award’ (Jewel of India). Reuters named him as one of the top 10 water trailblazers of the world. He was selected by the Impeller magazine as a ‘true global water hero’, and was named the world’s second most influential water industry leader by Water and Wastewater International of UK.

Prof. Biswas was a member of the Global Agenda Council of the World Economic Forum and is currently member of the International Advisory Board, Pictet Investments, Geneva; member of the Advisory Board, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur; and Strategic Advisor, Singapore International Water Week.

He advises Chairman of the Board or CEOs of three major multinational companies which are listed within the first 50 of the Global 500 companies, on corporate strategies, technological issues and social responsibilities.

Prof. Biswas is the founder of the International Journal of Water Resources Development and was its Editor-in-Chief for its first 29 years. He has authored or edited 84 books and has published well over 650 scientific and technical papers. His work has now been translated into 38 languages. He is regular contributor to many national and international newspapers on resource and development related issues and also is a television commentator in three continents.

COVID-19 heightens water problems around the world

Jun 14, 2020 12:30 pm UTC| Life

COVID-19 will unquestionably delay achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the latest global attempt to improve the quality of life of billions of people around the world by 2030. Increasing access to...

How new Silk Road will cement China as major trading partner for Africa

Aug 21, 2018 16:12 pm UTC| Insights & Views Economy

In 138 BC China took its first step towards global connectivity with the establishment of the historical Silk Road. Zhang Qian was sent by Emperor Wudi to Central Asia to establish trade relationships. His historic...

Why smart policies are key to solving the world’s clean water problems

Jul 19, 2018 16:15 pm UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Around 2.5 to 3 billion people worldwide dont have access to clean water. There are at least another 1.5 billion in developed countries who may have access to clean water but dont trust its quality. A number of widely...

Taxes on sugary beverages are not enough on their own to halt march of obesity in Asia

Sep 27, 2017 08:52 am UTC| Insights & Views

Facing declining markets in Western countries, multinational food companies are targeting Africa, Asia, and Latin America as new consumers of packaged foods, in a move that may worsen the global epidemic of chronic illness...

New Delhi is running out of water

Jul 11, 2017 20:08 pm UTC| Insights & Views Economy

As summer temperatures soar above 40C in New Delhi, acute water shortages are gripping parts of Indias capital. Signs of water stress are now everywhere, and residents in southern and western parts of the city have not...

India's wells are running dry, fast

Jun 17, 2017 16:23 pm UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Over the past three years, the monsoon the rainy season that runs from June through September, depending on the region has been weak or delayed across much of India, causing widespread water shortages. With the onset...

Economy

India Slashes Fuel Taxes: A Ten-Rupee Relief Amid Global Energy Turmoil

Effective March 26, 2026, the Indian government made a decisive fiscal action by significantly lowering the Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) on motor fuels. This change in policy lowers the tax on gasoline from INR 13...

France's 2025 Budget Deficit Shrinks More Than Expected, Easing Fiscal Pressure

France made stronger-than-expected progress on its public finances in 2025, with the national budget deficit falling to 5.1% of GDP a notable improvement from 5.8% recorded in 2024 and well ahead of the governments own...

Oil Prices Slip as Trump Extends Iran Ceasefire Deadline Amid Ongoing War Fears

Global oil prices were on course for a weekly loss on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump granted Iran a 10-day extension before threatening to strike its energy infrastructure, offering markets a brief reprieve ...

Asian Stocks Rebound as Trump Delays Iran Strike Deadline

Asian equity markets staged a partial recovery on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump postponed a planned military strike on Iranian energy infrastructure, extending the deadline by over ten days while signaling...

Google's TurboQuant Sends South Korean Chip Stocks Tumbling Amid AI Memory Demand Fears

South Korean equities took a sharp hit Friday as mounting concerns over reduced artificial intelligence memory demand dragged the KOSPI index to its lowest point in more than two weeks. The benchmark fell nearly 3% to...

Politics

Lavrov Claims U.S. Seeks Control Over Damaged Nord Stream Pipelines

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the United States of pursuing dominance over the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, which were severely damaged by underwater explosions in September 2022. The...

Chinese Universities with PLA Ties Found Purchasing Restricted U.S. AI Chips Through Super Micro Servers

Procurement records reveal that four Chinese universities, two of which have direct ties to the Peoples Liberation Army, acquired Super Micro Computer servers loaded with restricted Nvidia AI chips over the past year. The...

U.S. Praises Kurdistan's Role in Oil Markets Amid Iran War Fallout

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a significant diplomatic call Thursday with Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, signaling Washingtons commitment to regional energy stability as conflict...

Russia Accused of Helping Iran Target U.S. Forces, European Powers Tell G7

European nations have formally accused Russia of providing military intelligence and drone technology to Iran to help target American forces in the Middle East, raising the issue directly with U.S. Secretary of State Marco...

Trump Signs Executive Order to Pay TSA Workers Amid Airport Security Crisis

President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he will sign an executive order directing Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to ensure Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees receive their pay,...

Science

SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has revealed a significant shift in the companys near-term space exploration strategy, announcing that SpaceX is now prioritizing the development of a self-growing city on the Moon rather than focusing...

SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates

Elon Musks SpaceX is shifting its near-term space exploration strategy, choosing to prioritize a return to the Moon before pursuing missions to Mars, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report citing sources familiar...

NASA and SpaceX Target Crew-11 Undocking From ISS Amid Medical Concern

NASA has confirmed that the agency, in coordination with SpaceX, is targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. Eastern Time (2200 GMT) on Wednesday, January 14, for the undocking of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission from the International...

Neuralink Plans High-Volume Brain Implant Production and Fully Automated Surgery by 2026

Elon Musks brain-computer interface company Neuralink is preparing for a major expansion, announcing plans to begin high-volume production of its brain implant devices and transition to a fully automated surgical procedure...

Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency

The U.S. Senate has officially confirmed billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, making him the 15th leader in the agencys history. The confirmation, which took place on Wednesday, marks...

Technology

Federal Judge Blocks Pentagon's Blacklisting of AI Company Anthropic

A federal judge has temporarily prevented the Pentagon from enforcing its designation of Anthropic as a national security supply-chain risk, dealing an early blow to the Trump administration in a growing dispute over...

SMIC Allegedly Supplies Chipmaking Tools to Iran's Military, U.S. Officials Warn

Chinas top semiconductor manufacturer, SMIC (Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation), has reportedly been transferring chipmaking equipment to Irans military industrial complex, according to two senior Trump...

Google's TurboQuant Algorithm Sends Memory Chip Stocks Tumbling

Major memory chipmakers took a significant hit on Thursday after Google researchers introduced a groundbreaking compression algorithm that threatens to reduce artificial intelligence demand for memory chips. Samsung...

Reflection AI Eyes $25 Billion Valuation in Massive $2.5 Billion Funding Round

Nvidia-backed artificial intelligence startup Reflection AI is in advanced discussions to secure $2.5 billion in fresh funding, with negotiations pointing to a staggering pre-money valuation of $25 billion, according to a...

Nanya Technology Shares Surge 10% After $2.5 Billion Private Placement from Sandisk and Cisco

Shares of Taiwan-based memory chip manufacturer Nanya Technology soared to their daily limit of 10% on Thursday morning following the companys announcement of a major $2.5 billion private placement deal backed by prominent...