VNIT Nagpur Departrnent of Architecture And Planning Engineering

Dr. Rajashree Kotharkar

Professor

Brief Bio

PhD | Architect | Urban Planner

Professor and Climatology Lab In-charge,

Department of Architecture and Planning,

Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (VNIT) Nagpur (Maharashtra) India 440011

https://in.linkedin.com/in/rajashree-kotharkar-12424315

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rajashree-Kotharkar

Orcid ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5063-2757

Dr. Rajashree Kotharkar (architect and urban planner) is a Professor at the Department of Architecture and Planning, Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (VNIT) Nagpur, India. She works in the realm of urban environmental research exploring the impact of urban morphology on heat stress distribution, outdoor thermal comfort, heat risk perception, heat vulnerability and sustainable urban development. She has completed multiple research projects funded by national and international funding agencies like Department of Science and Technology GoI, World Bank, American Red Cross, etc.

Her current work focuses on heat wave studies, developing and implementing intervention policies for urban heat risk mitigation and adaptation. She is an expert committee member for review of National Disaster Management Authority guidelines on heat wave preparedness. She is also an Energy Conservation Building Code trainer and part of the expert committee in State Disaster Management Authority of Maharashtra and National programme on climate change and human health.

She has been one of pioneering researcher in India to investigate the urban heat using Local Climate Zone (LCZ) Classification. She investigates intra-urban thermal contrast through the application of local climate zone (LCZ) framework. Her research provides valuable insights on sustainable urban development, energy policy, heat response planning and risk adaptation strategies in rapidly urbanising cities, ultimately aiming to improve the quality of life in urban areas while addressing climatic concerns.

Recently, she has developed “Framework for the model heat action plan for Indian Cities” under the project funded by National Disaster Management Authority of India.

 

Research Interest
Climate Responsive Architecture
Green Buildings
Urban Sustainability
Urban Heat Island Study
Compact City Concept
Vernacular Architecture

Educational Details

Sr. No.DegreeYearSpecializationUniversity
1B.Arch.
2M.U.Plng. (SPA, Delhi)
3Ph D

Contact Information

E-mail id: rskotharkar@arc.vnit.ac.in

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=0gU6HWYAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao

Title of the research / consultancy projectStatusFunding AgencyAmountRole
Developing Framework for Heat Vulnerability Assessment and Model Heat Action Plan for Indian CitiesMarch 2020 -Dec. 2023National Disaster Management AgencyRs. 51.2 LakhsPI#
AI Resilience ModelJune-Nov.2022SEEDS1,00,000/-Technical Advisor
Study of extreme heat risk perception among informal-sector workers in Nagpur, IndiaMay-Oct. 2022Global Preparedness Centre of the American Red Cross9888 USDPI#
Heat wave and Urban Heat Island Hazard Mapping of six selected cities with potential future impactMarch 2021 – July 2022Taru Leading Edge Pvt. Ltd.Rs. 16 LakhsPI#
Heat Study of Slums in DelhiCompleted Mar.-Dec. 2019Pantanka ConstructionRs.5.00 LakhsPI#
Capacity Building for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation with a Special Focus on Sustainable Habitat and Risk ManagementCompleted 2017-2020DST – CCPRs. 73 LakhsPI#
Evolving strategies for mitigating urban heat island in Nagpur using ‘Local Climate Zones’ and Human Thermal Stress.Completed 2014 – 17SERB – DSTRs.29.61 LakhsPI#
Assessing Urban Sustainability in the context of Urban/Spatial Cluster Typologies using GIS and Multivariate Analysis.Completed 2013 – 16HSMI-HUDCORs.18.40 LakhsPI#
“Cool Roof for Rural Poor: Saving Energy, Beating the Heat Affordably” Under World Bank Innovation Challenge Program, Fiscal Year 2014in Collaboration with IIIT Hyderabad; Principal Investigator: Dr Vishal Garg; Co-Principal Investigator: RajashreeKotharkarCompleted Jan.-June 2014World BankTotal amount approx. Rs. 50 LakhsCo – PI#

Relevant Conference Publications:

 

  1. Kotharkar, Rajashree and Aanchal Vidyasagar, “Assessing the local climate zones framework as a tool to study heterogeneous urban environments”, presented at 11th International Conference on Urban Climate (ICUC11) held in UNSW, Sydney, Australia, from August 28th to September 1st, 2023.
  2. Kotharkar, Rajashree and Aveek Ghosh, “Application of local climate zone classification to assess summertime surface temperature dynamics in small and mid-sized cities in central India” , poster presentation at 11th International Conference on Urban Climate (ICUC11) held in UNSW, Sydney, Australia, from August 28th to September 1st, 2023.
  3. Kotharkar, Rajashree et.al. “ Assessing the integration of Building Science in Higher Education Curricula: Implications for Climate Change Adaptation in the Built Environment” paper presented at CATE ‘23; Comfort at the Extremes, held at CEPT, Ahmedabad , 13 – 15 December 2023
  4. Kotharkar Rajashree and Ghosh Aveek, “Review of heat wave studies & related urban policies: Case of South Asia”, 5th International Conference on Countermeasures to Urban Heat Islands (IC2UHI) 02 – 04 December 2019
  5. Kotharkar Rajashree, SahilAneja and Ghosh Aveek, “Heat Vulnerability Index for Urban Heat wave Risk Adaptation for Indian Cities: A Case Study of Akola”, 5th International Conference on Countermeasures to Urban Heat Islands (IC2UHI) 02 – 04 December 2019
  6. Kotharkar Rajashree, and Deshmukh Shweta, “Summertime Thermal Comfort Assessment for Compact Local Climate Zone”, 5th International Conference on Countermeasures to Urban Heat Islands (IC2UHI) 02 – 04 December 2019
  7. Rajashree Kotharkar and Anurag Bagade (2016), “Local Climate Zone Classification for Indian Cities: A Case study of Nagpur”. 4th International Conference on Countermeasures to Urban Heat Island, Singapore. 30th May to 1st June 2016.
  8. Rajashree Kotharkar and Anurag Bagade (2016),  “Study of Urban Heat Island Effect using Local Climate Zone and Land Surface Temperature using Landsat 7 ETM + for Nagpur, India.” 4th International Conference on Countermeasures to Urban Heat Island, Singapore. 30th May to 1st June 2016.
  9. Kotharkar Rajashree, Anusha Pallapu and Pankaj Bahadure (2016), “Measuring Urban Sustainability at Cluster and City level: Case of Nagpur City”,International Conference and 47th Annual Seminar of Regional Science Association, India, organised by Department of Geography, University of Calcutta, 28th – 30th January 2016
  10. Garg, Kotharkar, Sathaye, Rallapalli, Kulkarni, Reddy, Rao and Sarkar, “Assessment of the Impact of Cool Roof in Rural Buildings in India” , presented at 3rd IC2UHI- Third International Conference on Countermeasures to Urban Heat Island, Venice, Italy, 13-15 October, 2014. Best outreach award
  11. Kotharkar Rajashree, SurawarMeenal, Kulkarni Nilesh and KandyaAnurag, “Urban Heat Island Study using Local Climate Zones Classification: Nagpur City, India”, Submitted for oral presentation at ICUC-9, Ninth International Conference on Urban Climate, July 20-24, 2014, Toulouse, France. Under Review.
  12. Kotharkar Rajashree and SurawarMeenal (2013), “Impact of Land use/ Land cover and Population density on Urban Heat Island Development”, Paper presented in 12th International Asian Urbanisation conference, Dec 28-30, 2013 at Department of Geography, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India. http://www.bhu.ac.in/seminar/sept2012/IAUC.pdf
  13. Kotharkar Rajashree and SurawarMeenal (2013), “Impact of Land use/ Land cover on Urban Heat Island in Nagpur city using Remote Sensing”, paper presented and selected for best paper award in 6th AGSE International Conference on  Geospatial Momentum for Society and Environment, 16 – 19 Dec’ 2013 at CEPT University, Ahmadabad, India., http://agse2013-cept.in/
  14. Kotharkar Rajashree (2012), “Urban Climate Fields Classification for an Indian City: Nagpur, India” Presented a paper ICUC 8, Eighth International Conference on Urban Climate, August 6-10 August, 2012, Dublin, Ireland. http://urbanclimate.org/newsletters/IAUC045.pdf
  15. Kotharkar Rajashree (2012), “Multilayered Approach towards Sustainable Settlement Pattern in Western Vidarbha of India”, Poster publishedICUC 8, Eighth International Conference on Urban Climate proceedings, August 6-10 August, 2012, Dublin, Ireland.http://urban-climate.org/newsletters/IAUC045.pdf
  16. Khan Smita and Kotharkar Rajashree (2012), “Evaluation Of Urban Indian Schools As Learning Environs Using Post Occupancy Evaluation For Building Performance”, IAPS, June 2012, Glasgow, UK, listed in Google Scholar, http://www.iaps2012.org.uk/
  17. Kotharkar Rajashree, Pankaj Bahadure and Vyas Ashish (2012), “Compact City Concept: Its Relevance and applicability for planning of Indian Cities”, published at PLEA 2012, Lima Peru, http://www.plea2012.pe/proceedings.php listed in Google Scholar
  18. Kotharkar Rajashree and Bahadure Sarika (2012), “Mixed Land Use and Sustainable Urban Development”, published at PLEA 2012, Lima Peru, http://www.plea2012.pe/proceedings.php listed in Google Scholar.
  19. Khan Smita and Kotharkar Rajashree (2012), “Indian School Environments: Policy , Practice & Research”, IAPS, June 2012, Glasgow, UK , http://www.iaps2012.org.uk/
  20. Kotharkar Rajashree, Deshpande S. A. and Gupta Rajesh (2010), “Vernacular Housing Design In Central India: Issues And Concerns For Today” ICSAUD 2010 International Conference Sustainable Architecture and Urban Design 2010 at School of Housing, Building and Planning, UniversitiSains Malaysia, 3-4th March 2010, pp 151-165
  21. Kotharkar Rajashree and Waghmare Sarika (2010), “Mixed Land Use – An approach to Sustainable Urban Development”, International Conference onUrbanism and Green Architecture” on 30th& 31st October, at NIT Hamirpur, pp 149-158

Publications (Journal / Conferences) :  50+

Relevant Journal Publications (Urban climate and urban sustainability):

 

  1. Vaidya Mrinali, Keskar, Ravindra andKotharkar, Rajashree, “ DEALB: an entropy and superpixel based regionalization algorithm for identifying local climate zone boundaries”, Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing, Under Review
  2. Vaidya Mrinali, Keskar, Ravindra andKotharkar, Rajashree, “ Quantifying the effect of surrounding spatial heterogeneity on land surface temperature based on local climate zones using mutual information”, Sustainable City and Society, 107, 105455, 2024 ; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2024.105455
  3. Vaidya Mrinali, Keskar, Ravindra and Kotharkar, Rajashree, “Classifying heterogeneous urban form into local climate zones using supervised learning and greedy clustering incorporating Landsat dataset”, Urban Climate, 53,101770, 2024 ; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.uclim.2023.101770
  4. Kotharkar, Rajashree et al, “Numerical analysis of extreme heat in Nagpur city using heat stress indices, all-cause mortality and local climate zone classification”, Sustainable Cities and Society, Volume 101, February 2024, 105099, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2023.105099
  5. Kotharkar, Rajashree and Dongarsane, Parikshit, “Investigating outdoor thermal comfort variations across Local Climate Zones in Nagpur, India, using ENVI-met”, Building and Environment, Volume 249, 1 February 2024, 111122, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2023.111122
  6. Kotharkar, Rajashree et al,“Quantification of summertime thermal stress and PET range in a tropical Indian city”, Urban Climate, Volume 53, January 2024, 101758, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.uclim.2023.101758
  7. Kotharkar, Rajashree et al,“Determining influence of urban morphology on air temperature and heat index with hourly emphasis”, Building and Environment, Volume 233, 1 April 2023, 110044, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2023.110044
  8. Kotharkar, Rajashree et al, “Approach to local climate zone based energy consumption assessment in an Indian city”, Energy and Buildings, Volume 259, 15 March 2022, 111835,

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2022.111835

  1. Kotharkar, Rajashree and Ghosh. Aveek,“Progress in extreme heat management and warning systems: A systematic review of heat-health action plans (1995-2020)”, Sustainable Cities and Society, Volume 76, January 2022, 103487, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2021.103487
  2. Kotharkar, Rajashree and Ghosh. Aveek, “Review of heat wave studies and related urban policies in South Asia”, Urban Climate, Volume 36, March 2021, 100777, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.uclim.2021.100777
  3. Kotharkar Rajashree , Ghosh Aveek and Kotharkar, Varun, “Estimating summertime heat stress in a tropical Indian city using Local Climate Zone (LCZ) framework”, Urban Climate

Volume 36, March 2021, 100784, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.uclim.2021.100784

  1. Kotharkar Rajashree and Bagade Anurag and Singh, P R, “A systematic approach for urban heat island mitigation strategies in critical local climate zones of an Indian city.”,Urban Climate 34, 100701, 2020
  2. Kotharkar Rajashree, P Bahadure, “ Achieving Compact City Form through Density Distribution: Case of Indian Cities”, Journal of Urban Planning and Development 146 (1), 04019022, 2020
  3. Kotharkar Rajashree, Bagade Anurag and Agarwal, Abhay, “Investigating local climate zones for outdoor thermal comfort assessment in an Indian city”, GeographicaPannonica 23 (4), 318-328, 2019
  4. Kotharkar, Rajashree; Pallapu A. and Bahadure, Pankaj. ” Urban Cluster–Based Sustainability Assessment of an Indian City: Case of Nagpur” Urban Plann. Dev., 2019, 145(4): 04019018 ; DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)UP.1943-5444.0000527
  5. Kotharkar, Rajashree; and Bahadure, Pankaj.“Achieving Compact City Form through Density Distribution: Case of Indian Cities” Urban Plann. Dev., 2020, 146(1): 04019018 ; https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)UP.1943-5444.0000529
  6. KotharkarRajashree, Bagade Anurag and Ramesh, Aparna,“Assessing urban drivers of canopy layer urban heat island: A numerical modeling approach” Landscape and Urban Planning 190, 103586
  7. KotharkarRajashree, Ramesh, Aparna and Bagade Anurag,“Urban Heat Island Studies in South Asia: A Critical Review”, Urban climate 24, 1011-1026,
  8. KotharkarRajashree and Bagade Anurag, “Evaluating urban heat island in the critical local climate zones of an Indian city”, Landscape and Urban Planning, ISSN,01692046 169 (2018) page no 92-104; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2017.08.009
  9. KotharkarRajashree and Bagade Anurag, “Local Climate Zone classification for Indian cities: A case study of Nagpur”,Urban climate 24, 369-392, 2018
  10. S Bahadure and R Kotharkar, “Framework for measuring sustainability of neighbourhoods in Nagpur, India”, Building and Environment 127, 86-97
  11. KotharkarRajashreeand SurawarMeenal, “Land use, land cover, and population density impact on the formation of canopy urban heat islands through traverse survey in the Nagpur urban area, India”, Journal of Urban Planning and Development , ISSN 07339488142 (1): 04015003-1-13, 2016;DOI:10.1061/(ASCE)UP.1943-5444. 0000277.
  12. Garg,V.,Kotharkar,R.,Sathaye,J.,Rallapalli,H., Kulkarni, N., Reddy, N.,Rao, P.,Sarkar, A., “Assessment of the impact of cool roofs in rural buildings in India”, Energy and Buildings, ISSN,03787788, 114 (2016) pg no 156–163, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2015.06.043
  13. S Bahadure, R Kotharkar , “Assessing sustainability of mixed use neighbourhoods through residents’ travel behaviour and perception: the case of Nagpur, India”, Sustainability 7 (9), 12164-12189
  14. R Kotharkar, R Deshpande, “A comparative study of transformations in traditional house form: the case of Nagpur region, India”J IntSoc Study Venarcular Settlements 2 (2), 17-33, 2012
  15. R Kotharkar, SA Deshpande, R Gupta, “Responding to the Change, Making ‘The Vernacular’ Relevant: Case StudyVarhad’Region in Maharashtra, India”
  16. Khan Smita and Kotharkar Rajashree, (2012) “Performance Evaluation of School Environs: Evolving an Appropriate Methodology Building” , Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences Vol.50, 2012, pp 479-491, listed in SCOPUS and Google Scholar http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042812031904
  17. Khan Smita and Kotharkar Rajashree, (2012) “Through the Eyes of the Learner: A critical evaluation of an urban Indian school” , International Journal of Architectural Research, ArchNet IJAR 2012,Vol. 6, Issue 2, pp 82-100 http://archnet.org/publications/6655, listed in SCOPUS and Google Scholar
  18. BahadureSarika and Kotharkar Rajashree (2012), “Social Sustainability and Mixed Land Use, Case Study of Neighbourhoods in Nagpur, India” , Bonfring International Journal of Industrial Engineering and Management Science, December 2012,Vol. 2 No. 4 pp 76-83 http://www.journal.bonfring.org/papers/iems/volume2/BIJ-002-1744.pdf, listed in Google Scholar, Indexed in ProQuest
  19. Kotharkar Rajashree, Bahadure Sarika, Bahadure Pankaj, and SurawarMeenal (2012), “Measurability for Sustainable Urban Development: Concept to Application”, ABACUS, A Bi-Annual International Journal on Architecture, Conservation and Urban Studies, Vol. 7, No.1, pp 72-82; http://www.bitmesra.ac.in/UploadedDocuments/Menu_634896151071854580_ABUCUS%20paper%20previews.pdf
  20. Kotharkar Rajashree, DongaonkarNeha and Bahadure Sarika (2012), “Land Use and Carbon Footprint: A case of Nagpur”, Spandrel Issue 5, Monsoon 2012, pp 52-59; http://spandrel.spabhopal.ac.in/SpandrelAbstracts%202012/Kotharkar-Dagaonkar-Bahadure.pdf
  21. Khan Smita, Kotharkar Rajashree and LatkarMadhuvanti, (2012), “Are Children a Marginalised Population? An Investigation into Child Centric Design”, SPACE, The SPA Journal of Planning and Architecture, Vol.17, No.1,Jan – June 2013, pp 28-44, ISSN 0970-0706
  22. Kotharkar Rajashree and Deshpande Roopal, (2012),“Comparative Study’ of Transformations of Traditional House-form, Case Study Nagpur Region”ISVS e journal, Vol.2, No. 2, pp 17- 26
  23. Kotharkar Rajashree, Deshpande S. A. and Gupta Rajesh (2009),“Vernacular Courtyard Housing Pattern in Varhad Region of Central India: A Case for Meaningful Conservation”, ABACUS, A Bi-Annual International Journal on Architecture, Conservation and Urban Studies, Spring 2009, Vol. 24, No 1, pp 58-71. ISSN:0973-8339 ABACUS; http://www.bitmesra.ac.in/UploadedDocuments/Menu_634324511310387290_ABACUS%20old%20issues%20vol%201%20no%201.pdf
  24. Dr. Rajashree S Kotharka, Mrunali Vaidya, Ravindra Keskar, DEALB: A Post-classification Framework for Regionalizing Local Climate Zones in the Urban Environment,Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing,  https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12524-024-01950-x
  25. Dr. Rajashree S Kotharkar, Mrunali Vaidya, Ravindra Keskar, Quantifying the effect of surrounding spatial heterogeneity on land surface temperature based on local climate zones using mutual information, Sustainable Cities and Society- Elsevier, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2024.105455
  26. Dr. Rajashree S Kotharkar, Parikshit Dongarsane, Investigating outdoor thermal comfort variations across Local Climate Zones in Nagpur, India, using ENVI-met, Building and Environment- , 10.1016/j.buildenv.2023.111122
  27. Dr. Rajashree S Kotharkar, Parikshit Dongarsane; Aveek Ghosh; Varun Kotharkar, Numerical analysis of extreme heat in Nagpur city using heat stress indices, all-cause mortality and local climate zone classification  ,Sustainable Cities and Society, 10.1016/j.scs.2023.105099
  28. Dr. Rajashree S Kotharkar, Mrunali Vaidya; Ravindra Keskar, Classifying heterogeneous urban form into local climate zones using supervised learning and greedy clustering incorporating Landsat dataset, Urban Climate,  10.1016/j.uclim.2023.101770
  29. Dr. Rajashree S Kotharkar, Parikshit Dongarsane; Aveek Ghosh, Quantification of summertime thermal stress and PET range in a tropical Indian city, Urban Climate, 10.1016/j.uclim.2023.101758
  30. Dr. Rajashree S Kotharkar, Aanchal Vidyasagar, Aveek Ghosh, Application of LCZ to Urban Heat Island Studies, Local Climate Zone Application in Sustainable Urban Development: Experience from East & Southeast Asian High-Density Cities, https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-56168-9_5
Sr. No.Patent TitleApplication No.DatePresent Staus

Short Term Training Courses (STTP) / Workshops conducted as a Main Co-ordinator

 

  1. Short Term Training Programme (STTP) on “Extreme Events, Disaster Risk Reduction and Management”, 21st – 23rd November 2019 (DST-CCP)
  2. STTP on “Sustainable Habitat” from 21st – 25th September 2019 (DST-CCP)
  3. STTP on “Extreme Events, Disaster Risk Reduction and Management”, 11th – 15th March 2019 (DST-CCP)
  4. STTP on “Sustainable Habitat” from 7th – 12th January 2019 (DST-CCP)
  5. STTP on “Sustainable Habitat” from 24th – 30th June  2018 (DST-CCP)
  6. STTP on “Extreme Events, Disaster Risk Reduction and Management”, 19th-23rd March 2018 (DST-CCP)
  7. Winter School on “Green Building with special emphasis on ECBC”30th – 4th Nov. 2017 (DST-CCP)
  8. STTP on “Sustainable Cities” from 19th – 23rd October 2016.
  9. Workshop on “Measuring Urban Sustainability” 9th– 10th October 2015 (Partially supported by HSMI)
  10. Workshop on “Sustainable built environment” in January 2015
  11. Multi-stakeholder Workshop on Cool Roofs at VNIT Nagpur on 11th June, 2014, organized under the Project “Cool Roofs for Rural Poor: Saving Energy, Beating the Heat Affordably” supported by the World Bank Innovation Challenge Program, FY 2014.
  12. One day Workshop on “Introduction to Green Building Design Concepts“, 7.01.2012; Conducted for IIA for the practicing architects.
  13. One Day workshop on “Green Building Design Concepts and Application“, 16.12.2011,for engineers and architects.
  14. STTP on “Emerging issues in Architecture and Planning” 14TH– 19TH July 2008 (sponsored by AICTE)

 

● As a Head of the Department and BoS Chairman:Head of the Department and Chairman, BoS since November ‘2013 to October 2016.
● Member of Institute level Academic Program and Performance Evaluation Committee since 2018
● Member of UG, PG admission committees
● Member of the scrutiny committee for various officer level posts

Sr. No.Awards