Natural Resources Data Management System (NRDMS) – A suite of technologies for Local Level Planning
GIS databases, Resource Profiles and Almanacs
Based on the ‘Needs Assessment’ study, data sets have been collated from various agencies and Line Departments operating at national, state and district levels. Major national survey agencies that provided data sets for the construction of GIS databases for the pilot districts include Survey of India (SOI), India Meteorological Department (IMD), National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSSLUP), Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), Central Water Commission (CWC), Forest Survey of India (FSI), Geological Survey of India (GSI) and Census of India. Data relating to agriculture, irrigation, cropping patten, road network, health & education facilities, veterinary centers in some instances are collated from the state or district level Line Departments. Limited primary surveys have been carried out in Upper Gandheswari Sub-Basin and Chagalkuta watersheds in Bankura and, Byrasagar and Rampatna watersheds of Kolar district to fill up the data gaps pertaining to the hydrological modeling studies. Similar surveys have been carried out in Kolar for estimating demand and supply of various types of energy. All these data sets are being put together into the database structure prepared out of the Conceptual Data Model based on the “Needs Assessment” study. SOI’s topographic map form the cartographic base for the GIS Databases of the districts. Resource profiles and District Almanacs have been prepared using the above data sets for demonstration to the local level officials and use at the district NRDMS centers.
GRAM++ and GIS Tutors
An Interactive Tutor has been developed to demonstrate the use of each and every function of GRAM++ so that new users can get themselves familiar with the functionalities of the Package in no time. A GIS Tutor has also been developed for use in training of staff from the Line Departments and other local level institutions entrusted with the responsibility of preparing local level development strategies.
In addition to the above tools useful in assessing the local natural and social resource endowment and spread of facilities, pilot studies have been undertaken to examine the socio-economic situation of a district vis-à-vis the next higher planning unit – the state. The integrated database for Bankura has been utilized to estimate indicators like migration, literacy (including gender gap), work force (including gender gap), agriculture, industry, employment, access to amenities like drinking water, electricity, and health services which can be compared with the corresponding indicators for the State of West Bengal for drawing up area-specific development strategies. Estimates of the Human Development Index (HDI) of Bankura and the State of West Bengal have been made by combining life expectancy, adult literacy, enrolment ratio and real GDP Per Capital for use in local level planning.
With the above technological tools and resource databases available at the districts, and the institutions of local self-governance (zilla panchayats) in place, it is expected that the process of local level planning will be more scientific and take into account the local resources, and the locally felt needs of the people while drawing up local development strategies. Based on this experience and upgradation of the methodology and tools, NRDMS is now poised towards forging functional linkages with various User Departments and Ministries like Ministries of Rural Development, Agriculture, Water Resources, and Health & Family Welfare. Such linkages are expected to build up the desired spatial data management capabilities into their activities.