PRAYOG, an initiative of CTARA, IIT Bombay was started in June 2021 in response to the need felt by many for a platform to enable citizens, government bodies, and NGOs to come together, pose their problems and find possible solutions. PRAYOG's mission, accordingly, is to become the first port of call for all development problems and engage with society to provide innovative technological solutions through multi-stakeholder collaboration.
The PRAYOG approach includes identifying problems from various stakeholders in a structured way, bringing solution seekers & solution providers together while leveraging funding through CSR and other sources. This includes the building of a database of stakeholders across India and connects with them for problems and appropriate solutions. It also hopes to enable the government to streamline processes & policies through the participation of academic institutions.
IIT Bombay
Bakul Rao is Professor, Centre for Technology Alternatives for Rural Areas (CTARA), IIT Bombay and PI for the PRAYOG initiative. Her areas of research interest include decentralized Planning of panchayati raj institutions, natural resources planning, environmental assessment and remediation, climate change, municipal solid waste management, and sustainable development and sanitation.