The 3^rd International River Congress (IRC-3), jointly organized by the South Asian Institute for Advanced Research and Development (SAIARD); National Centre for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences (NCAS), and the University of Kelaniya, under the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology of Sri Lanka; was held on the 8^th and 9^th of November 2024 at the University of Kelaniya premises.

The special interest of the event was in riverine management from various disciplines, including chemical and mineral engineering, biomedical engineering and parasitology, histo-archaeology, geology, geography, etc. The event mainly focused on how and what measures are to be taken to restore the virgin quality of riverine in terms of achieving the long-term sustainable goals. 

The inaugural ceremony of the congress was honoured by the presence of Dr. Satyanjal Pandey, Hon. Deputy High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, as the Chief Guest, while Senior Professor Nilanthi de Silva, Vice-chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, and Prof. Neelima Gupta, Vice-chancellor of Dr. Harisingh Gour Sagar Central University, India, graced the occasion as the Guests of Honour. The keynote address was delivered by Prof. Neelima Gupta. Dr. Satyanjal Pandey, Senior Professor Nilanthi de Silva, and Prof. Prashanthi Narangoda, Director and Chairman/Council of Management of NCAS, also addressed the gathering during the event.

The inaugural ceremony also featured an awarding ceremony where Professor Nileema Gupta was awarded with the Prof. S. R. Basu Memorial Award, Mr. Yashwant Deval was awarded the Best River Rejuvenator Award, and Prof. Md. Manzoorul Kibria was awarded with the Best River Scientist of the Year 2024.

Furthermore, it is noteworthy that the book cover page “River and Research (Vol. - 2) was also launched during the event.

The event also witnessed the participation of Dr. Biswajit Roy Chowdhury, the Patron of IRC-3 and the Chairperson, SAIARD, and Professor N. Sakalasurya of the Department of Geography, University of Kelaniya, Joint Convener of IRC-3. Additionally, the Central Environmental Authority, Urban Development Authority, Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Irrigation, National Water Supply & Drainage Board, International Water Management Institute (IWMI), World Bank (Sri Lanka Division), Nippon-Koei (Japan), River Recycle Ltd., Finland, Ministry of Education, Greece South Asia Rainwater Network (SARNET), African Union Development Agency, and several other stakeholder agencies were also among the participants. The gathering was also comprised of local and international participants, some of whom participated online.