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Project Chaya
🚨 Announcement: Applications Invited for Project Research Scientist (Medical & Non-Medical) Positions at AIIH&PH, Kolkata under Project CHAYA • Last Date: 30th October 2026 (6:00 PM) • Click to View Notification & Apply →
Project Chaya

(CHAYA): Climate-Health Heat Adaptation through AI-enabled Digital Twin based Risk Prediction and Peer-Support Systems for Workers Safety & Yield– A Multicentric Implementation Research Study

A multidisciplinary research initiative integrating Artificial Intelligence, Digital Twins, IoT, Occupational Health, and Climate Science to pioneer heat-illness prediction and prevention.

Supported by

Investigator-Initiated Research Proposals for "ICMR Intermediate Extramural Grants" - 2026
("ICMR NISCHAYAK ANVESHAN Extramural Grants")

Grant No: IIRPIG(NAG)-I-2026-01-0383

Explore Research

Scientific Objectives

Developing an intelligent occupational health surveillance ecosystem through multimodal data acquisition and predictive modeling.

Climate & Environmental Science

Advanced assessment of workplace heat exposure and dynamic environmental stressors utilizing highly sensitive sensory arrays.

Artificial Intelligence

Implementation of advanced machine learning algorithms for real-time heat illness risk prediction.

Digital Twin Framework

Instantiation of accurate virtual representations combining physiological and environmental telemetry.

Occupational Medicine

Formulation of evidence-based preventive interventions adhering to strict physiological safety guidelines.

System Architecture & Simulation

A rigorous demonstration of the telemetry pipeline and Digital Twin visualization.

Data Acquisition
Integration of wearable biomedical sensors and environmental IoT on physical subjects.
Edge Telemetry
Secure, high-frequency data transmission utilizing microcontrollers to central cloud repositories.
AI/ML Engine
Processing multidimensional arrays through predictive models to compute real-time illness probability.
Digital Twin Dashboard
Visualization of physiological states and environmental overlays for immediate remedial occupational interventions.
National Implementation Framework
Strategic deployment across 4 critical regions of India: North, South, East, and West to capture diverse climactic and occupational stress patterns.

Implementation Timeline

Real-time progress and structured milestones for the Project Chaya deployment.

Phase One: Main Activity
Current Activity
Hiring & Procurement
Hiring of Human resources across sites, securing ethical clearances, and prototype development of the digital twin and sensory array.
Phase Two: Upcoming
Site Prep & Deployment
Initial calibration of the sensory array in designated occupational zones and edge-telemetry testing.
Phase Three: Mid-Term
Model Training & Integration
Fusing biometric streams with environmental data to train ML models and activate dashboard.
Phase Four: Long-Term
Validation & Policy
Validating heat-illness predictions and finalizing evidence-based safety guidelines.

Notifications & Updates

Latest announcements regarding recruitment, procurement, and project milestones.

Notification for Hiring of Human resources

Procurement of Product and Services

⏳ Coming Soon

Research Consortium

A multidisciplinary coalition of specialists across occupational health, artificial intelligence, and epidemiological sciences.

Prof. Monalisha Sahu
Principal Investigator

Prof. (Dr.) Monalisha Sahu

MBBS, MD
ORCID: 0000-0002-4818-5994
Project Head & Occupational & Environmental Health Specialist
Head, Department of Occupational Health
All India Institute of Hygiene & Public Health (AIIH&PH), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India
Fellow of Harvard University Global Community Organizing and Advocacy for Climate and Health (Global COACH)
Dr. Arkaprabha Sau
Co-Principal Investigator

Dr. Arkaprabha Sau

MBBS, MD, DPH, PhD
ORCID: 0000-0003-2307-3272
Chief AI/ML/IoT Scientist & Occupational Health Specialist
Deputy Director (Medical)
Regional Labour Institute, Kolkata
Directorate General of Occupational Safety and Health, Govt. of India
Prof. Ranjan Das
Co-Principal Investigator

Prof. (Dr.) Ranjan Das

MBBS, MD
ORCID: 0000-0000-0000-0000
Public Health Expert
Director, AIIH&PH, Kolkata
& Ex Director National Centre for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India
Dr. Bhavesh Modi
Co-Principal Investigator

Dr. Bhavesh Modi

MBBS, MD, PhD
ORCID: 0000-0003-0004-6693
Occupational Health Scientist
Scientist G & Director
National Institute of Occupational Health Research (NIOHR), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India
Dr. Harshal Ramesh Salve
Co-Principal Investigator

Prof. (Dr.) Harshal Ramesh Salve

MBBS, MD
ORCID: 0000-0002-6445-6432
Environmental Health Expert
Professor
Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS New Delhi
Dr. Merlyn Joseph
Co-Principal Investigator

Dr. Merlyn Joseph

MBBS, MD
ORCID: 0000-0000-0000-0000
Occupational Health Expert
Assistant Professor
St. John's Medical College Hospital, Bengaluru
Prof. Debashis Dutt
Co-Principal Investigator

Prof. (Dr.) Debashis Dutt

MBBS, MD
ORCID: 0000-0000-0000-0000
Public Health Expert and Epidemiologist
Director-Professor, Public Health Administration
AIIH&PH, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India
Prof. Jhareswar Maiti
Co-Principal Investigator

Prof. (Dr.) Jhareswar Maiti

PhD
ORCID: 0000-0001-9546-5860
Engineering & Safety Analytics Specialist
Professor, Industrial and Systems Engineering
IIT Kharagpur
Prof. Bobby Joseph
Co-Principal Investigator

Prof. (Dr.) Bobby Joseph

MBBS, MD, DNB
ORCID: 0000-0000-0000-0000
Occupational Health Expert
Professor, Division of Occupational Health
St. John's Medical College Hospital, Bengaluru
Dr. Manas Kumar Kundu
Co-Principal Investigator

Dr. Manas Kumar Kundu

MBBS, MD
ORCID: 0000-0000-0000-0000
Public Health Expert
Additional Director & HoD, HPE
AIIH&PH, Kolkata, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India
Dr. Ankit Mayurkumar Sheth
Co-Principal Investigator

Dr. Ankit Mayurkumar Sheth

MBBS, MD
ORCID: 0000-0002-7766-6543
Occupational Health Specialist
Scientist F
National Institute of Occupational Health Research (NIOHR), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India

Study Collaboration Institutes

Our network of prestigious partner institutions across India driving the multicentric implementation of Project Chaya.

Study Collaboration Institutes

Contact & Collaboration

Direct inquiries to the Principal Investigator or the Chief AI Scientist via the official channel below.


chayaicmr@gmail.com