Nagpur led India's civil engineering fraternity in hosting the National Seminar on Forensic Civil Engineering on 10–11 October 2025, which was instituted by the Institution of Engineers (India), Nagpur Local Centre. The seminar was attended by over 400 delegates comprising civil engineers, researchers, consultants, and academicians from across India for the single-minded purpose of looking for ways to advance structural safety and sustainability.
Under the heading "Understanding, Diagnosing, and Preventing Failures in Structures," the seminar looked at the ways in which forensic science can be employed to prevent and investigate catastrophes within bridges, roads, and other large infrastructures. Some of the topics covered included structural forensics, material degradation, geotechnical failure, environmental forensics, transportation infrastructure, water infrastructure, even legal and ethical principles that guide such investigations.
Some of the seminar attractions included the showcase of 20 real case studies with structural collapse and the techniques of inquiry that were used to lead them to resolution. The examples were best to highlight means by which forensic engineering would make India's transition towards developing and sustaining infrastructure stronger.
Parallel to this was an exhibition featuring the latest diagnostic equipment, test equipment, and materials used in failure analysis, with special focus on technology used in current engineering work.
The seminar was opened by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, who was the guest of honor and was conferred the Honorary Fellowship of the Institution of Engineers (India) — an award given to only 52 high-profile personalities in 105 years of the institution. The award recognized Gadkari for his contributions towards sustainable infrastructure and public work innovation.
In hosting this historic seminar successfully, Nagpur reaffirmed itself as a rising hub of forensic civil engineering in India, leading the way with a model for infrastructure development in the country of safety culture, transparency, and innovation.
Noted speakers such as Dr. C.V.R. Murthy (IIT Madras), Dr. Pradeep Ramancharla (CBRI Roorkee), and Prof. Abhay Bambole (VJTI Mumbai) shared authoritative opinions on structural integrity and technological advancements.
