Formed with the goal of making strategic contributions to the Upper Indus Basin Network (UIBN), the UIBN–India Chapter (IC) has called on experts in the physical and social sciences to reduce the gap in data on the Indus basin region of India. The first UIBN–IC workshop comprised a day-long event during which participants discussed ongoing research on regional extremes, glacial monitoring, impact on ecosystems and the pressing issues of data management and biophysical changes, followed by an exploration of existing knowledge and related gaps in Upper Indus Basin (UIB) research.