JBF has established a Water Resource Centre (WRC) in Jodhpur, at the historic Bijolai Palace, nestled in the Aravalli Hills, and built by Maharaja Takhat Singh (18431873). Bijolai Palace, located 11km from the city centre of Jodhpur, stands on a peaceful hillock. Adjacent to the palace is the sprawling Bijolai Lake, a traditional rainwater-harvesting structure. Thanks to the restoration of the historic palace, and to the recreation of the traditional ambience of this heritage property, the WRC has been transformed into a world-class facility for conferences, trainings, & workshops, along with accommodation. It is the organizational entity of the Foundation concerned with capacity development, knowledge generation, and information-dissemination activities.
WRC has been established as a knowledge centre as well as a conclave for the exchange of ideas and experiences by civil society groups, including CBOs. It also facilitates knowledge networking and policy advocacy. It has formed partnerships with national and international resource centres, technical agencies, & knowledge networks; it thus serves as a channel for the flow and exchange of knowledge and experience. It has emerged as a centre for knowledge, best practices, and useful data and information related to water quality and availability.
WRC facilitates dialogue on water-related issues and policies, based on knowledge generated from field experiences and action-oriented studies in partnership with think tanks and other knowledge centres. Thus, it contributes to innovation in natural resource development and social engineering.
WRC is a favorable location for researchers and students studying issues related to water management and rural development, including community-based development, social capital, civil society, water resource management, adaptation to climate change, rainwater harvesting, and water quality. Given its direct access to the rather isolated desert communities of Marwar, and its vast experience of working with them to address water crises, WRC possesses unmatched potential for undertaking collaborative and multidisciplinary research projects. In addition, it attracts highly qualified professionals who work with desert communities.
More importantly, WRC promotes the emergence of an active and enlightened rural community by training and capacitating rural volunteer groups through accomplished social workers to mobilize communities in water resource management. WRC has a water-testing laboratory, which contributes to the safe drinking water campaign. It also has a library.
Hosting Conferences and EventsThe WRC is a venue for national and regional conferences, conventions, work shops, and symposiums that support the objectives of the Foundation. It is also a venue for networking for creating public awareness and for cementing cohesion among communities by providing a platform for continued interaction.