Junior Research Fellow in AI-Based Cyber-Physical Protection of Digital Substations, IIT Roorkee (Dr Bhaveshkumar Bhalja)

Job Description

IIT Roorkee is hiring a JRF in power system protection for a project on AI-based cyber-physical protection and monitoring of digital substations. The project is sponsored by GE Renewable Energy Technologies Limited, Hyderabad.

At a glance

• Post: Junior Research Fellow, one post
• Where: Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT Roorkee
• Principal Investigator: Dr Bhaveshkumar R. Bhalja
• Pay: ₹40,000 a month (consolidated), plus contingency funds for national and international conferences
• Duration: 4 years or until the project ends, whichever is earlier
• Apply by: 8 October 2026 (by email)

The work is set in substations built on the IEC 61850 standard. In these, sampled values, GOOSE and MMS messages, event logs and condition-monitoring data all share the process bus and station bus. Utilities want analytics there that are secure, interoperable and able to run at the edge.

About the JRF in power system protection

• Review the literature on digital substations, AI/ML in protection and monitoring, IEC 61850 cyber risks and utility constraints
• Define a cyber-physical threat model and use cases that matter to utilities
• Build a research data framework from protection settings, process-bus data, event logs, network telemetry and asset condition
• Set up a baseline digital substation test environment or simulation workflow to find and reduce cyber risks early
• Develop, validate and deploy new AI-based cyber-secure designs for process-bus and station-bus networks

The selected candidate may get a chance to join the PhD programme, according to the ad.

Why this role matters

Substations are going digital, and each new network link is also a new point of attack. An industry-funded project here builds skills that grid utilities and equipment makers are short of, with a possible PhD at the end.

Eligibility

• M.E./M.Tech in Electrical Engineering with a specialisation in power systems, or equivalent
• You must have qualified GATE or NET
• Indian nationals only

On the signed ad, “+ HRA (as per institute rules)” is struck out by hand and “Consolidated” is written in. So read the pay as ₹40,000 a month with no HRA. Preference goes to SC/ST candidates when qualifications and experience are equal. The interview is offline, and the date will be sent to eligible candidates.

Pay and duration

• ₹40,000 a month, consolidated
• Contingency funds for attending national and international conferences
• 4 years or until the project ends, whichever is earlier

How to apply

Email your application to Dr Bhaveshkumar R. Bhalja at bhavesh.bhalja@ee.iitr.ac.in by 8 October 2026. Attach a detailed CV with your degrees in order, your experience, self-attested copies of degree and experience certificates, and proof of your GATE score with marks, rank and year. The ad is listed on the IIT Roorkee project jobs page.

Key dates

• Advertised: 22 September 2026
• Last date for email applications: 8 October 2026

Please read the official IIT Roorkee advertisement (22 September 2026) before applying, and browse more Junior Research Fellow jobs on ResearchJobs.in.