Abstract
Survey Department of Nepal is a government agency under the Ministry of Land Reform and Management. Originating from 1957, the mission of Survey Department is to give support for creating and efficient and sustainable use of Land Information including maps and related product documents. Changing in society and changing in technology affects us all, we need to anticipate and plan for change in the needs of those who depend upon our land information, maps with related product document and services. To meet the user needs, attempts have been made to have resources for development of new products and services by introducing the new technology like GPS and digital system in some of the surveying and mapping activities including Geographical/Land information system.
1. Twenty five years in retrospective
Understanding change in surveying and mapping activities requires interpretation of the present in terms of the past. Knowing change in the past will prepare us for the future.
In Nepal, the history of surveying and mapping activities excluding cadastral survey is not so long. Surveying and mapping activities up to 1970's AD was mainly concentrated on the preparation of cadastral maps and related documents. They are prepared as an island map without the use of national geodetic controls. The purpose of preparing total land holding and the collection of revenue according to the types and areas of the holdings.
The Geodetic Survey and Topographical Survey in Nepal was established during 1970's. The initiation to define the spheroid with projection system and the national datum of the country was taken during those period. Earlier the system of map projection and preparation of topographical maps were all done with the help of Survey of India through Colombo Plan agreement. The ground control system were prepared by extrapolating the trigonometric control network system of India and adjacent countries.
Survey Department was established, as a department status of the His Majesty's Government of Nepal, on 1975 AD. Topographical Survey, Geodetic Survey, Cadastral Survey and Survey Training Centre are the main branches of the department. Looking at the state of surveying and mapping, aviaries function were carried out by the different branches of the Department during past twenty five years.
What are the major changes on the field of surveying and mapping activities during past twenty five years of time ? There are a number of specific development which are changing the faces of Survey Department.
- Cadastral Survey :
- Establishment of napigoswara and preparation of cadastral maps/documents in national level 1964 AD.
- Completion of a series of cadastral maps of cultivated areas for all the seventy five district of Nepal.
- Geodetic Survey :
- Establishment of Geodetic survey 1971 AD.
- Establishment of higher and lower order national Geodetic control network.
- Establishment of lower order national levelling net work.
- Establishment of observatory tower, base stations, gravity station and laplace station.
- Survey Training :
- Establishment of Survey training centre 1969 AD.
- Production of different level of survey technicians (Basic, junior and supervisory level).
- Updating knowledge on surveying and mapping techniques for working surveyors by refresher courses on various subjects.
- Topographic Survey :
- Establishment of topographical survey 1976 AD.
- Establishment of aerial survey lab, installation of photogrammetry, cartography and printing equipments.
- Preparation of aerial photos of whole kingdom of Nepal (1979 and 1992 AD) at 1:50,000 scale.
- Preparation of Land use maps (at 1:50000 scale) and subsequent report of whole kingdom of Nepal 1980 AD.
- Preparation of topographic base maps (1:25000 and 1:50000 scale) of whole kingdom of Nepal except some portion of north western region of Nepal.
- Preparation of Nepal China International boundary maps (1979 AD).
- Preparation of large scale maps of specific regions of the country.
2. Organisational structure
The survey department is one of the three departments of the ministry of Land Reform and Management.
